Thread: Ever sell back vacation?

Originally Posted by timj219

I'm trying to decide whether to sell back a chunk of my PTO. Somewhere between 80 and 150 hours. I have 230 now so selling 150 would leave me with 80 which is the minimum they say I have to have left after the sell back. The company is offering 90% value. I have no commitments now that will require much vacation time and obviously I don't usually take much time off. I've accrued about as much as I can and will either have to start taking time off or do the sell back because soon I'll hit the limit and won't accrue any more.

I'll probably sell it back - just getting cold feet at the last minute I guess and wondering if maybe I shouldn't be using this time. Maybe the time off is worth more than the money. Anybody ever do this? Did you wish later you hadn't?

I'd definitely sell some of it. Just a week's worth, UNLESS they only allow sell backs at certain times of the year. If you are able to sell back at anytime... sell enough so that you can keep accruing... and do that every time you are getting close to the cap. Otherwise you are just saying... nope.... I don't want your free money. Now if they only allow sellbacks at certain times of the year... that's another story all together. I'd still sell it back... but deciding just how much to sell back would be a bit trickier, because of course you want to keep as much PTO as possible available in case of severe illness or something... but you still never want to hit that cap where you can't accrue anymore.

Originally Posted by timj219

I'm trying to decide whether to sell back a chunk of my PTO. Somewhere between 80 and 150 hours. I have 230 now so selling 150 would leave me with 80 which is the minimum they say I have to have left after the sell back. The company is offering 90% value. I have no commitments now that will require much vacation time and obviously I don't usually take much time off. I've accrued about as much as I can and will either have to start taking time off or do the sell back because soon I'll hit the limit and won't accrue any more.

I'll probably sell it back - just getting cold feet at the last minute I guess and wondering if maybe I shouldn't be using this time. Maybe the time off is worth more than the money. Anybody ever do this? Did you wish later you hadn't?

When I ETS'd from the Air Force I sold back a whole bunch of leave and, later in life, sold back a bunch of accrued vacation time from another job. I didn't regret the decision in the least either time.

I've never heard of this idea before is it widespread in the US? Why would you willingly give up paid holiday as it's not like you get loads anyway?
Put it this way I get 24 days off this year and 9 bank holidays and work would have to offer me something really bonkers to make me not use them all.

Originally Posted by PeterUK75

I've never heard of this idea before is it widespread in the US? Why would you willingly give up paid holiday as it's not like you get loads anyway?
Put it this way I get 24 days off this year and 9 bank holidays and work would have to offer me something really bonkers to make me not use them all.

PTO is just paid time off. It is not like a set holiday date. It is more like vacation time except you can use as much or as little as you want. It is usually accrued based on how many hours/days you have worked and it can be used however you like. Want a whole week off? Use a week's worth of PTO. Just want to work half a day on Friday? Use 4 hours of PTO.

Oh, we don't have that here. How much notice do you have to give and is it a sneaky way to get out of paying for sick leave by making people use PTO time rather than calling in sick?
Even so you are still giving up paid time you could be at home relaxing I can't see why you wouldn't use it all unless it's a peer pressure thing and it's seen as bad form taking all of it and I'd still take it all anyway and just not care what they think but then again I am rather lazy.

Sorry for derailing the topic .

Originally Posted by PeterUK75

Oh, we don't have that here. How much notice do you have to give and is it a sneaky way to get out of paying for sick leave by making people use PTO time rather than calling in sick?
Even so you are still giving up paid time you could be at home relaxing I can't see why you wouldn't use it all unless it's a peer pressure thing and it's seen as bad form taking all of it and I'd still take it all anyway and just not care what they think but then again I am rather lazy.

Sorry for derailing the topic .

It depends on the company. Some companies still use standard sick days, holidays and vacation days; some use nothing but PTO, and some use a mixture there-of. PTO is really just a way of putting the time off in the hands of the employee to decide how and when they want to use it. Or not use it. If you save up your PTO... then you can get a big fat check for it... almost like a bonus.

I must admit I'd rather have the time off than extra money as what's the point in having a few extra quid if I'm always at work?

Originally Posted by PeterUK75

I must admit I'd rather have the time off than extra money as what's the point in having a few extra quid if I'm always at work?

That's the nice thing about PTO. You are free to take it... and the workaholic who would rather have the cash is free to do that too.

In my case it is a way to get out of paying sick time because the company eliminated all our accumulated sick time. So if I am sick I have to use PTO. At the same time they offered short term and long term disability insurance (they pay part of the cost) in case of illness that uses up all your PTO. PTO can be used for vacation, holiday, or sick time. I accumulate about 240 hours (30 days) per year. But if I save up 280 I stop accruing. So I always have to be sure to use some before I hit that threshold. I can sell in June and November. So I think I may sell 80, keep 150, and I'll take some days off this summer. Maybe a 4 day weekend every two weeks in June July and August. That would be kind of nice.

Originally Posted by timj219

In my case it is a way to get out of paying sick time because the company eliminated all our accumulated sick time. So if I am sick I have to use PTO. At the same time they offered short term and long term disability insurance (they pay part of the cost) in case of illness that uses up all your PTO. PTO can be used for vacation, holiday, or sick time. I accumulate about 240 hours (30 days) per year. But if I save up 280 I stop accruing. So I always have to be sure to use some before I hit that threshold. I can sell in June and November. So I think I may sell 80, keep 150, and I'll take some days off this summer. Maybe a 4 day weekend every two weeks in June July and August. That would be kind of nice.

That's actually a pretty nice accrual rate. I'm in kind of an odd position in that I have worked in the same job at the same place for over a decade, but I have worked for four different companies during that time (one of them TWICE.) I work in rehab in a SNF. The rehab services are contracted, and the SNF just can't seem to pick a rehab company they want to stick with. But I love the facility so every time they switch I hire on with the new company. I've gotten to learn a lot about the way that different companies act in all areas of business, including HR. The company I am currently with does not actually allow you to sell it back AT ALL. You're only allowed to carry over 40 hours to the next year. Anything above that you have saved up... you just lose; so you best believe I use it almost as soon as I get it, and I definitely make sure I have used it all by time contract renewal time comes up. It really shocked me when I learned that because that is something I have never seen in this industry.

Originally Posted by Unique POV

I'm in kind of an odd position in that I have worked in the same job at the same place for over a decade, but I have worked for four different companies during that time (one of them TWICE.)

I hear that. In my current job I worked for the local company, two different contractors, and now they've brought us back in house as employees of the parent company. All in eight years. But I did get grandfathered in for benefits on most of those changes. Most times that does not happen.