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USA Operations Centers Paid Time Off May 2017
As this policy is reviewed, please note the following states/areas for which exceptions exist:
State and Municipal Leave Policy, California
Paid Time Off (PTO) is a benefit that provides benefits-eligible employees a bank of hours to be used for paid time away from work. PTO may be used for leisure, personal illness, family illness, medical appointments or other time off not eligible in another Time Away from Work policy.
Eligibility All full time and benefits-eligible part time employees are eligible to accrue PTO. Newly hired benefit-eligible employees begin accruing PTO at the start of their employment.
PTO Accrual Unless otherwise required by law, benefits-eligible employees accrue PTO hours on the first day of the pay period for the hours paid in the previous pay period. The employee must be in an active status on the first day of the pay period to accrue PTO for hours paid during the previous period.
The amount of PTO an employee accrues is based on the hours paid during the previous pay period*, multiplied by the applicable hourly accrual rate. Accrued PTO will be calculated by the Time Management Tool, and the tool projects estimated PTO accrual for future pay periods.
*Note:
Nonexempt (Timesheet) employees accrue PTO based on hours paid each week, with a maximum of 40 hours per week.
Exempt (Salary) employees accrue PTO based on standard hours entered in PeopleSoft. Standard hours in PeopleSoft can be viewed in the time management tool.
Employees accrue PTO while on any type of paid leave.
Hourly Accrual Rate The hourly accrual rate is based on an employee’s completed years of service on the first day of the pay period.
New Hires and Employees with fewer than 20 years of completed service are eligible for the following:
*This is the maximum accrual that employees with fewer than 20 years of completed years of service as are eligible for.
Employees with 20 or more completed years of service as of are eligible for the following:
**For employees in these tenure bands, with completed service, will remain at the listed accrual rate for the duration of their career.
Hourly Accrual Rate Increases:
The hourly accrual rate is based on completed years of service. Thus an employee’s seniority date of service is the trigger for an accrual rate change.
The hourly accrual rate will increase on the pay period following the employee’s seniority that moves them into the next hourly accrual rate category.
If an employee has an anniversary on the first day of the pay period that makes them eligible for a new hourly accrual rate, the new rate begins that pay period.
If an employee has an anniversary after the first day of the pay period that makes them eligible for a new hourly accrual rate, the new rate will take effect the following pay period.
Maximum PTO Hours PTO is capped at the following Maximum PTO Hours. Once the Maximum PTO Hours have accrued, no additional PTO will accrue until the PTO balance is reduced below the Maximum PTO Hours.
Requesting and Recording PTO
PTO is requested and recorded in the Time Management Tool.
Employees should request PTO in advance or as soon as reasonably possible, unless otherwise provided by law.
Employees should request PTO in 15 minute increments, unless otherwise provided by law, and then PTO can be recorded to the minute.
Non-exempt (Timesheet) and Salaried Non-exempt employees should record all PTO; however business areas may use discretion in recording when the absence duration is minimal.
A guideline of 15 minutes daily is recommended, however manager discretion may be used to handle each situation on its merits.
Breaks of 20 minutes or less, other than at the beginning or end of an employee's shift, should not be recorded as PTO but should be treated as a paid break.
Leadership has discretion in affording flexibility on whether their exempt employee must record PTO for absences of less than 3.75 hours. Exempt employees must record PTO absences of 3.75 or greater.
Business areas have discretion on limiting scheduled PTO during training periods and peak business times based on the business area needs, unless the absence is otherwise protected by law or Joyner is required by law to provide such leave.
Requests to use PTO for unscheduled absences due to personal and/or family illness may be protected by law, and generally leadership will allow PTO to be used for such absences. Requests to use PTO for unscheduled absences for any other reason may be denied by leadership at its discretion, provided the absence is not protected by law.
The decision to permit an employee to use PTO for an unscheduled absence that is not protected by law will not affect the treatment of any such absence under the company’s Attendance Policy or other attendance performance criteria. Employees who violate the company’s Attendance Policy or engage in excessive absenteeism will remain subject to disciplinary measures, in accordance with applicable law.
If the PTO absence for personal illness extends beyond 7 calendar days, refer to the Short Term Disability policy.
If the PTO absence for family illness extends beyond a reasonable amount of time, or the employee exhausts their PTO and the time away is not protected by law, leadership has the discretion to request the employee return to work.
Important: All PTO must be used and exhausted before any type of unpaid leave may be considered, unless otherwise permitted by law or as designated.
Unauthorized PTO absences are applicable for employees outside the Attendance Policy, as well as those designated to it. Unauthorized Absences are defined under the General Information section within the Attendance Policy.
PTO and Pay
PTO does not count as time worked when calculating overtime
PTO is paid at the appropriate shift rate if the employee is in a department eligible for shift pay. See Shift Pay policy for details.
Working while on PTO Non-exempt/overtime eligible employees must record and be paid for time worked. Employees should review Joyner’s pay policy and the Company’s expectations about work outside the office. It is the responsibility of non-exempt/overtime eligible employees to completely and accurately report all their time worked.
Payment of Unused PTO Employees are paid for unused PTO in their banks when:
The employee terminates for any reason (including retirement)
The employee transitions to a benefits-ineligible position
The employee must be in an active status on the first day of the following pay period to accrue PTO for the previous pay period. Unless otherwise required by law, employees who terminate, retire or move to a benefits-ineligible position during a pay period will not receive partial PTO accrual for that pay period.
PTO cash outs will not be considered for employees who have reached their maximum PTO hours. Employees are responsible for monitoring their PTO balances and planning accordingly.
PTO and the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) A PTO absence may qualify for FMLA protection. FMLA provides eligible employees up to 12 weeks of time off within a rolling 12-month period. Leave under the FMLA shall run concurrently with any applicable Joyner leaves, including PTO. Leave under the FMLA shall be neither related to, nor contingent upon, applying for or receiving PTO.
Refer to the Family and Medical Leave policy or contact Joyner’s third Party Health Service Provider for more information or to request FMLA protection.
PTO and American with Disabilities Act (ADA) Under the provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act and similar state and municipal laws, Joyner provides reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities so that they may perform the essential functions of their job unless such an accommodation presents an undue hardship. Requests for reasonable accommodations shall be neither related to, nor contingent upon, applying for or receiving, Paid Time Off.
Refer to the US Accommodation Request Under ADA – Employee/Applicants policy for more details.
State Exceptions
California
In California, the following is applicable for benefits-eligible employees:
Earned PTO time is considered wages, and PTO time is earned, or vests, as labor is performed. Upon termination of employment (regardless of the cause) all earned and unused PTO will be paid to the employee at his or her final rate of pay. The amount of earned PTO will be calculated up to the last day the employee is in a paid status prior to the termination date.
Benefits eligible employees transferring to a benefits-ineligible position, or to an agency intern position, will be paid earned and unused PTO as outlined above.
Request PTO in advance or as soon as reasonably possible, unless otherwise provided by law, to allow for you to take the time and for management to plan for coverage.
Employees will request and record PTO in the Time Management Tool.
Employees must notify their supervisor/management (or a designated person) within one hour or as soon as is reasonably practical, from the beginning of the work day for an unscheduled PTO absence, unless otherwise instructed or provided by law.
Employees are responsible for accurately recording PTO in the Time Management Tool.
Employees should verify they have adequate PTO in their bank prior to requesting and recording time off.
Employees should monitor their PTO balance to ensure the maximum PTO balance does not affect accruing additional PTO time.
Supervisors must be consistent in administering the PTO policy.
Supervisors should encourage their employees to request PTO in advance, unless otherwise permitted by law, and notify the supervisor of the dates so there is adequate time to arrange coverage during the employee's absence.
Supervisors should not performance manage or conduct attendance related counseling for employees on the use of scheduled and approved PTO.
While supervisors are encouraged to be flexible when considering a request for PTO, approval is not mandatory unless the leave is required by law. If there is a business reason to do so, a supervisor may deny a request for PTO, unless the absence is otherwise protected by law or Joyner is required by law to provide such leave.
Supervisors should be aware of their employees’ PTO balances and monitor requests for time off when PTO is not available.
Supervisors should record PTO for employees in situations when an employee does not have access to the time management ool.
Supervisors should not grant PTO:
for the purpose of exploring non Joyner opportunities or working for another employer, if it represents a conflict of interest,
to establish eligibility for incentive programs or benefits, or
to extend company affiliation once the maximum Short Term Disability benefit has been exhausted (except when pending/qualifying as a reasonable accommodation under the ADA, or similar law).