Hardest Challenges in Leave Management? Survey Says …

Employee abuse of leave is a problem for 10% and consistent application is an issue for 7%. A lucky 4% have no or very few issues when it comes to managing employee leave.

Survey Highlights

As expected, paid vacation time, separately or as PTO, is available to over 95% of those responding to our survey, while paid sick leave is an option for 85%, and paid personal days are available for 39%. Bereavement leave is offered by 82% and 90% offer 6 or more paid holidays per year. Extended medical leave is offered by 27% and maternity/paternity leave is offered separate from other sick leave by 24%.

Wellness days, floating days, birthdays, casual leave, study leave, volunteer leave, and three days off to get married are just a few of the paid leaves available to our survey participants.

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Below, you will find detailed responses to questions about:

• Vacation
• Sick Time
• Paid Time Off (PTO)
• Bereavement Leave
• Military Leave
• Jury Duty
• Voting Leave
• Exempt Employee Deductions
• Unused Leave Rollover
• Payout on Termination
• Donating Leave
• Demographics of Survey Respondents

A total of 807 organizations participated in this survey, which was conducted in September 2012.

What Types of Paid Leave Do You Offer?

What types of partially or fully PAID leave does your company offer? (Check all that apply.)
Answer Options	Response Percent	Response Count
Vacation, either separately or in combined paid time off (PTO)	97.0%	782
Sick leave, either separately or in combined paid time off (PTO)	85.1%	686
Personal days	39.3%	317
6 or more holidays per year	90.4%	729
Bereavement leave	82.1%	662
Extended leave (paid) for major medical conditions	27.4%	221
Maternity/paternity leave (separate from other sick leave)	23.9%	193
None	0.6%	5
Other (please specify)	14.9%	120

Do you compute vacation and sick leave separately or as combined paid time off (PTO)?
Answer Options	Response Percent	Response Count
Separately	63.3%	508
As PTO	36.0%	289
We do not offer vacation, sick, or any other paid time off	0.7%	6

Vacation

The first year of employment provides 2 weeks of vacation time to both exempt and nonexempt employees for the majority of our survey respondents at 60% and 65% respectively. One week is offered to exempt employees for 20% and to nonexempt employees for 23%. Twenty percent offer more than 2 weeks to exempt employees and 9% offer 3 weeks or more to nonexempt employees.

Five years of employment provides exempt employees with 3 weeks of vacation for 58% of our survey participants and 62% provide nonexempt employees with 3 weeks. Four weeks or more is provided to exempt employees for 17% and to nonexempt employees for 8%. No vacation is provided to exempt employees for 1% of our respondents and 2% provide zero vacation to nonexempt employees.

Ten years of employment brings both exempt and nonexempt employees 4 weeks of vacation for 37% of those who responded to this question in our survey. Five weeks or more is provided to exempt employees for 12% and to nonexempt employees for 7%.

How much vacation time do these employee groups earn with ONE YEAR of service?
Answer Options	1 week	2 weeks	3 weeks	4 weeks or more	None	Response Count
Exempt	19.95%	59.64%	13.38%	6.12%	0.91%	441
Nonexempt	23.47%	64.55%	7.04%	2.35%	2.58%	426
Other (please specify)						66

How much vacation time do these employee groups earn with FIVE YEARS of service?
Answer Options	1 week	2 weeks	3 weeks	4 weeks or more	None	Response Count
Exempt	0.45%	23.87%	57.88%	16.89%	0.90%	444
Nonexempt	1.18%	26.65%	61.79%	8.25%	2.12%	424
Other (please specify)						67

How much vacation time do these employee groups earn with TEN YEARS of service?
Answer Options	1 week	2 weeks	3 weeks	4 weeks	5 weeks or more	None	Response Count
Exempt	0.00%	7.03%	42.63%	37.19%	12.02%	1.13%	441
Nonexempt	0.72%	6.24%	47.00%	36.93%	6.95%	2.16%	417
Other (please specify)							64

How much vacation time do these employee groups earn with FIFTEEN YEARS of service?
Answer Options	1 week	2 weeks	3 weeks	4 weeks	5 weeks or more	None	Response Count
Exempt	0.23%	4.81%	23.80%	49.43%	20.37%	0.23%	437
Nonexempt	0.96%	4.57%	25.24%	50.96%	15.63%	0.96%	416
Other (please specify)							67

Sick time

One half to one day per month is the amount of sick leave accrued by exempt employees for 38% of our respondents who offer this benefit and nonexempt employees accrue the same for 41%. Both employee groups accrue one week or less per year for 24% of survey participants. Exempt employees accrue 2 weeks per year for 14% and nonexempt employees accrue the same for 13%. Three weeks per year is accrued by both exempt and nonexempt employees for 3%. Four weeks is accrued annually by exempt employees for 4% and by 2.5% for nonexempt employees

How much sick leave do these employee groups accrue?
Answer Options	1/2 day per month	1 day per month	1 week or less per year	2 weeks per year	3 weeks per year	4 weeks or more per year	None	Response Count
Exempt	18.04%	20.16%	23.87%	13.53%	3.45%	4.24%	16.71%	377
Nonexempt	20.22%	20.78%	23.55%	12.74%	3.05%	2.49%	17.17%	361
Other (please specify)								135

Paid Time Off (PTO)

The first year of employment provides 2 weeks of PTO to exempt employees for 31% of those who offer this benefit and nonexempt employees receive the same for 32% of our survey respondents. One week is offered to exempt employees for 11% and to nonexempt employees for 15%. Fifty-seven percent offer more than 2 weeks to exempt employees and 50% offer 3 weeks or more to nonexempt employees.

Five years of employment provides exempt employees with 3 weeks of PTO for 33% of our survey participants and 32% provide nonexempt employees with 3 weeks. Four weeks or more is provided to exempt employees for 57% and to nonexempt employees for 54%. No vacation is provided to exempt employees for .5% of our respondents and 2.5% provide zero vacation to nonexempt employees.

Ten years of employment brings 4 weeks of PTO to exempt employees for 38% and the same to nonexempt employees for 39% of those who responded to this question in our survey. Five weeks or more is provided to exempt employees for 44% and to nonexempt employees for 40%.

How much PTO do these employee groups earn with ONE YEAR of service?
Answer Options	1 week	2 weeks	3 weeks	4 weeks or more	None	Response Count
Exempt	11.2%	30.6%	37.9%	19.4%	0.9%	232
Nonexempt	15.1%	31.9%	34.9%	15.1%	3.0%	232
Other (please specify)						43

How much PTO do these employee groups earn with FIVE YEARS of service?
Answer Options	1 week	2 weeks	3 weeks	4 weeks	More than 4 weeks	None	Response Count
Exempt	0.0%	10.2%	32.6%	32.2%	24.6%	0.4%	236
Nonexempt	0.4%	11.6%	31.8%	33.1%	20.6%	2.6%	233
Other (please specify)							37

How much PTO do these employee groups earn with TEN YEARS of service?
Answer Options	1 week	2 weeks	3 weeks	4 weeks	5 weeks	6 weeks or more	None	Response Count
Exempt	0.00%	4.31%	14.7%	37.5%	27.6%	15.5%	0.0%	232
Nonexempt	0.00%	4.85%	14.1%	39.2%	24.7%	14.5%	0.00%	227
Other (please specify)								41

How much PTO do these employee groups earn with TEN YEARS of service?
Answer Options	1 week	2 weeks	3 weeks	4 weeks	5 weeks	6 weeks or more	None	Response Count
Exempt	0.0%	4.3%	14.7%	37.5%	27.6%	15.5%	0.0%	232
Nonexempt	0.0%	4.9%	14.1%	39.2%	24.7%	14.5%	0.0%	227
Other (please specify)								41

Bereavement leave

Time off for the funeral of a spouse, child, or parent is available for 98% of those who offer bereavement leave as a benefit. Brother and sister are included for 96%. Grandparent is included for 87% and grandchild is included for 79%. Stepparent and stepchild are included for 74% and 76% respectively. Mothers-in-law are included for 80% as are fathers-in-law, though brothers- and sisters-in-law are included for 60%. Extended family members are included for 25% and exes and his or her family members are included for 5%. Other covers 13% of responses for an eclectic mix that includes: significant other, domestic partner, legal guardian, close friend, and anyone living with you for more than a year. 

Does your company offer bereavement leave?
Answer Options	Response Percent	Response Count
Yes	90.1%	679
No	9.9%	75

If your company offers bereavement leave, which of the following are included in your definition of family?
Answer Options	Response Percent	Response Count
Spouse	98.4%	676
Child	98.4%	676
Mother/Father	98.1%	674
Brother/Sister	95.8%	658
Grandparent	86.6%	595
Grandchild	78.7%	541
Stepparent	74.2%	510
Stepchild	75.7%	520
Mother-in-Law	79.9%	549
Father-in-Law	80.1%	550
Brother/Sister-in-Law	59.8%	411
Aunt/Uncle/Niece/Nephew/Cousin	25.3%	174
Former Spouse	4.8%	33
Former In-Law	4.5%	31
Other (please specify)	12.8%	88

Military leave

Three percent of those who responded offer full pay in addition to any military pay they receive to employees on military leave. The difference between full pay and military pay is made available by 19% and 1.5% offer partial pay in addition to employees’ military pay. Fifty-three percent offer no pay in addition to pay employees receive from the armed forces.

Does your company offer paid military leave?
Answer Options	Response Percent	Response Count
No	53.4%	403
Yes, we pay the difference between employees’ military pay and their normal pay	19.2%	145
Yes, we pay employees part of their salary less any military pay they receive	1.5%	11
Yes, we pay employees their full salaries in addition to their military pay	3.4%	26
Not sure	12.9%	97
Other (please specify)	9.5%	72

Jury duty

Of those who offer paid time off for jury duty, 46% offer full pay less any jury duty pay employees receive from the court system. Forty-three percent provide full pay in addition to pay received from the court.

Does your company offer paid time off for jury duty?
Answer Options	Response Percent	Response Count
Yes, we’re required to by state law.	25.5%	192
Yes, for a limited time while serving on jury duty	32.0%	241
Yes, for an unlimited time while serving on jury duty	25.4%	191
No	10.8%	81
Not sure	3.3%	25
Other (please specify)	3.1%	23

If you offer paid time off for jury duty, which of the following is your policy?
Answer Options	Response Percent	Response Count
Employees receive their full salary minus jury duty pay	45.9%	310
Employees receive their full salary, and they can keep any jury duty pay	43.0%	290
Employees receive partial pay minus jury duty pay	1.0%	7
Employees receive partial pay, and they can keep any jury duty pay	1.0%	7
Not sure	4.9%	33
Other (please specify)	4.1%	28

Voting leave

State law requires 20% of our survey respondents to provide paid time off for voting and another 13% provide it even though it’s not required by their state. Thirty-two percent allow time off to vote but do not provide paid time off and 29% require employees to vote outside their business hours.  “Other” accounts for the remaining 6% with responses such as:

• Must use PTO time
• Election Day is a company paid holiday
• We offer work schedule flexibility
• Allow up to one hour to come in late or leave early to vote.
• No, our state is a vote by mail state, there is no need for time off to be provided
• Sometimes

Do you offer paid time off for voting?
Answer Options	Response Percent	Response Count
Yes, we’re required to by state law	20.2%	151
Yes, even though it’s not required by state law	12.6%	94
No, employees may have time off but it’s not paid	32.5%	243
No, employees must vote outside business hours	29.0%	217
Other (please specify)	5.6%	42

Exempt Employee Deductions

When asked whether survey participants deduct from exempt employees’ accrued leave to cover partial day absences, 34% do not and for 14% the answer is yes with the amount of time depending on the situation. Twenty-two percent deduct in half-day increments, 10% deduct in hourly increments, 5% deduct half hours, and 11% deduct quarter hours. “Other,” though only 4% of the responses for this question, provided a mixed bag with some interesting responses, including: “paid time off is not accrued, it’s at mgmt discretion,” “if they posted in the time system then yes it is deducted,” and “only when they have exceeded their leave amount.”

For EXEMPT employees, do you deduct from their accrued leave time for partial-day absences?
Answer Options	Response Percent	Response Count
No	34.2%	255
Yes, in 1/4-hour increments	10.7%	80
Yes, in 1/2-hour increments	5.2%	39
Yes, in 1-hour increments	9.9%	74
Yes, in half-day increments	22.4%	167
Yes, the amount varies depending on the situation	13.9%	104
Other (please specify)	3.6%	27

Unused Leave Rollover

Seventy percent of survey respondents allow employees to roll over all or a portion of their unused paid leave time from one year to the next. Use it or lose it is the rule of thumb for 18.4% and, though they can’t roll it over, 4.4% reimburse employees for all or part of their unused paid leave. “Other” at 7% once again provides a few interesting answers, including: “no, they lose it unless they request to be paid for unused leave” and “no, except in California.”  

Can your employees roll over unused paid leave time to the next year?
Answer Options	Response Percent	Response Count
Yes	20.0%	150
Yes, but only a certain amount of leave with some limitations	50.3%	377
No, they must use it or lose it each year	18.4%	138
No, they can’t roll it over, but we will reimburse them for all or part of their unused leave	4.4%	33
Other (please specify)	6.9%	52

Leave Payout at Termination

When asked which types of leave survey respondents pay out to employees when they leave the company, 61% pay for vacation, 8% pay out sick time, 44% pay out any unused PTO, and 7% don’t pay cash for unused paid leave.

Do you allow employees to cash in their accrued/unused paid leave time?
Answer Options	Response Percent	Response Count
No	69.3%	518
Yes, at the end of the year	5.2%	39
Yes, at the end of the year but with limitations	10.7%	80
Other (please specify)	14.7%	110

In general, which types of unused leave do you pay out to employees when they leave the company? (Check all that apply.)
Answer Options	Response Percent	Response Count
All vacation days	44.4%	332
Vacation days with limitations depending on caps, vesting, reason for leaving, etc.	17.1%	128
All sick days	2.7%	20
Sick days with limitations depending on caps, vesting, reason for leaving, etc.	4.7%	35
All PTO days	23.4%	175
PTO days with limitations depending on caps, vesting, reason for leaving, etc.	11.4%	85
None	6.7%	50
Other (please specify)	6.7%	50

Donating leave

While 25% of survey participants allow some degree of leave sharing or donating, no sharing paid leave between employees is the rule for 56% of survey participants. Seventeen percent have never addressed the issue and the remaining 2% have or would consider such a policy.

Do you allow employees to donate paid leave time to other employees?
Answer Options	Response Percent	Response Count
Yes	5.2%	39
Yes, with limitations	12.4%	93
Only on a case-by-case basis	7.2%	54
No	56.1%	420
We haven’t addressed this before	17.1%	128
Other (please specify)	2.0%	15

Accrued Leave Concurrent Requirements

Do you require employees to use accrued paid leave concurrent with FMLA leave?
Answer Options	Response Percent	Response Count
Yes	73.2%	538
No	26.8%	197

Do you require employees to use accrued paid leave concurrent with workers’ compensation leave?
Answer Options	Response Percent	Response Count
Yes	34.5%	253
No	65.5%	480

Demographics of Survey Respondents

Number of Employees. The majority of our survey respondents provide guidance to small or medium size employers with 63% providing HR services to a workforce of 1-250 employees and another 12% providing guidance to 251-500 employees at their organizations.

Participant. HR managers and directors account for 47% of the survey participants who self-identified, other HR professionals make up 26%, and 27% are in other areas with HR responsibilities.

Industries. Over half (67%) of the participants are in service industries; 20% are in agriculture, forestry, construction, manufacturing, or mining; 10% are in wholesale, retail, transportation, or warehousing; and 3% are in real estate, utilities, or “other.”

Organizations. A total of 807 organizations participated in this survey, conducted in September 2012. Of those who identified themselves, 56% are privately owned, 12% are public entities, and 27% are government or nonprofits.

Thanks to all who participated in the survey. Future topics include holidays and health insurance benefits.