PURPOSE / SCOPE:
ICOM recognizes the value and importance of providing opportunities for employees to take time off work to rejuvenate both physical and mental capacities that will benefit both the employee and ICOM. To that end, ICOM offers employees Paid Time Off (PTO).
POLICY AND PROCEDURE:
PTO is intended for vacations or other personal needs. Holidays, Continuing Education, Flexible Time Off (FTO), Military Time Off (MTO), Jury Duty and FMLA leaves are found in separate policies.
Eligibility and Accruals
All full-time employees are eligible to accrue PTO at a rate of 6.67 hours per pay period, which equates to 20 days per year if working 8-hour days. Accruals begin with an employee’s first pay period, there is no waiting period for the accrual nor for utilization. Employees on an unpaid leave of absence do not accrue PTO.
The maximum amount of PTO that may be accrued is 160 hours. An employee may use PTO before it is earned, thereby creating a negative accrual balance. The maximum permitted level of such a negative accrual is 40 hours and requires supervisor approval. A negative balance should be used rarely and is intended to assist new employees with scheduled vacations and to help employees with the timing of their vacations. Negative PTO balances are not permitted, the maximum amount of PTO
that may be accrued is 240 hours.
Using PTO
PTO may be used in increments as short as one hour for hourly (non-exempt) employees and no less than 1⁄2-day increments (typically 4 hours) for salaried (exempt) employees. Employees must submit a request through the HR/Payroll system, currently Paylocity, and should obtain supervisor’s approval prior to taking PTO. Employees are asked to submit time at least 30 days in advance to allow for adequate planning.
PTO is used to restore an employee to their regularly scheduled work week hours, it cannot be used to exceed the normally scheduled hours in a week. PTO will be used if Flexible Time Off (FTO) hours have been exhausted, however negative PTO balances are not permitted in such cases.
PTO hours may be used by employees serving in the Reserve or National Guard if they have exhausted their available MTO (Military Time Off) hours. Such employees are not required to use PTO time when fulfilling their military obligations.
PTO coordinates with FTO and disability benefits for employees on leave under the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA). If the employee is eligible for disability benefits, FTO and then PTO will be used during the waiting period and to make up the remaining amount of an employee’s compensation not covered by the disability benefit. At no time shall an employee earn more than 100% of their income.
Donation of PTO Hours for Hardship Situations
Employees may donate PTO hours to other employees facing hardship situations, within certain
limitations. A hardship may include, but is not limited to, a serious illness or injury resulting in
prolonged medical treatment, or a catastrophic event such as a natural disaster impacting the
employee’s primary residence. The donation of PTO does not create a bank of hours that would be
generally available to employees, it is intended to allow the transfer of PTO hours from one
employee’s account to another’s for hardship situations that have been approved.
To donate hours, employees must submit a written request to Human Resources (HR) identifying the
recipient of the donated hours, a brief description of the hardship situation, and the number of hours
they wish to donate. The request must be signed by the employee seeking to make the donation. HR
will review the request for eligibility and alignment with policy. The following guidelines will apply to
PTO donations:
▪ Employees may donate up to 40 PTO hours per event
▪ PTO donations are paid at the recipient’s rate of pay, not the rate of the donor
▪ Donor’s contributions cannot result in their own PTO balances dropping below 40 hours
▪ Recipients must exhaust their FTO and PTO balances prior to utilization of donated hours
▪ Recipients do not accrue PTO hours while using donated time
▪ Donated PTO does not extend FMLA leave time
▪ Donated PTO cannot be used post FMLA while employee is on an extended leave of absence
▪ Donated PTO is used on a per pay period basis, donors will be notified when their donation
will be deducted from their accounts
▪ Donated PTO hours are not paid out at the time of termination
All PTO donation requests and contributions will be treated confidentially.
Separation from Employment
At the time of separation, ICOM will pay out up to 80 hours of accrued, unused PTO, excluding any
donated PTO hours, as part of the final paycheck. The PTO payout will be calculated at the effective
hourly rate of pay at the time of separation.
PRIMARY POLICY OWNER:
VP of Human Resources & Organizational Development
SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS:
APPROVAL:
Effective: 9/1/21
Last Reviewed: 4/1/24
Review Requirement: 5 Years