Friday, December 5, 2008

PTO vs. Vacation/Sick Time

I recently came across a blog post on PTO that inspired a lot of discussion in the comment section. For those that don't know, PTO (Paid Time Off) is when an organization no longer gives you sick or vacation time, they give you a set number of PTO days and you can use them however you want (vacation, sick days, etc).

Having experienced both forms, I am a fan of PTO. While working at organizations that still use the old fashioned model of a set number of sick days and a set number vacation days, I was often frustrated with how it worked. If I never got sick, then those days just sat there, never being used. Once I got a job that gave me 20 days of PTO and some floating holidays, I loved it. I would never use them all because you might actually get sick. But for people like me, who never get sick, PTO is great. Plus, having PTO made the difference for me when I was considering two job offers. With nonprofit organizations typically paying their employees less than their for-profit counterparts, PTO is an inexpensive way to help retain employees.

For more information about PTO vs. Vacation/Sick Time you can click here and here.

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