What are an employee’s rights regarding PTO and write-ups?

Get Legal Help Today

Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save

secured lock Secured with SHA-256 Encryption

What are an employee’s rights regarding PTO and write-ups?

I work for a company that gives PTO that can be used to take days off for any reason if proper advance notice is given. We also have a policy that gives you the right to have 3 excused absences without any consequence. As for unexcused absences, they are supposed to take progressive steps. If an employee calls of work, and presuming that it was not excused, can the employer without informing the employee take 8 hours of PTO from the employee and also give them a write up?

Asked on September 29, 2010 under Employment Labor Law, California

Answers:

SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney

Answered 13 years ago | Contributor

If there is a firm policy, set out in a contract, a union contract, or an employee's handbook (or the like), it must be followed; such a policy is a contract, or at least an implied contract, between the company and the workers.

The problem is that if the policy is only in informal documents or the employee's handbook, it often is not firm. For example, employee handbooks commonly include various disclaimers to the effect that "policies may be changed at will," or "nothing in this manual creates a contract or employment." If there are disclaimers, the "policy" has no teeth and is not enforceable; it merely sets out what the company intended to do at the moment it was written, without binding them.

So if you have a contract, a union agreement, or one of those rare employee handbooks that lacks disclaimers and creates a firm, unequivocal implied contract, the company should follow those terms.


IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.

Get Legal Help Today

Find the right lawyer for your legal issue.

secured lock Secured with SHA-256 Encryption