Vacation, but not vacation?

Our vacation policy states the following (this was enacted prior to my working with this company):

Vacation time or pay benefits are accrued based upon your length of employment with (company) and the amount of time you work each year.

For purposes of calculating Company benefits, length of employment is determined by the number of years each employee has worked for the company.

Nonexempt (Hourly) Employees allowances will be earned in accordance with the following schedule:
· After completion of one year's service - 2% of gross pay earned during the calendar year.
· After completion of two year's service - 2 1/2% of gross pay during the calendar year.
· After completion of the third and all subsequent year's service - 5% of gross pay during the calendar year.

Nonexempt employee benefits are paid to them each December on the last payroll prior to the Christmas break.

So essentially, the employees are not allowed to "take" any vacation time during the year (because we have several periods of layoffs), instead, it is paid out at the end of the year.

Seems as though we're calling it vacation, but it's not really vacation.

Anyone else have a similar policy? Should we not be calling this vacation at all?

Thanks.



Comments

  • 2 Comments sorted by Votes Date Added
  • Is it just a wording problem or is it a bonus? There is no legal requirement to give vacations, although that would sure hinder recruiting. If there really is no vacation, calling extra money through a longevity bonus a vacation is a little strange. If people really do take vacation, I would change the policy to relate to reality.
  • Why would you call a once-a-year "bonus" vacation? Do you pay out the "vacation" money if the employee terminates prior to the December payroll? (In Illinois, if you call it vacation, you have to pay any accumulated vacation time to the employee with the final check.)

    This seems strange to me to call what you do vacation but the employee is not getting paid time off. Granted, the "vacation" money would certainly come in handy at the holidays. Why not call it a longevity bonus?
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