medical and dental appointments

learningtheropes

Our policy states that appointments are to be made during non working hours. However, if this is not possible, appointments must be taken as personal time off. Unfortunately, this has not been the "common practice". Employees have been taking doctor and dental appointments during banking hours and counting them as sick leave instead of personal time off. Can anyone tell me what your policy is concerning appointments. Are they taken as sick time or personal days? We only have 2 personal days per year. Any information you can give me would be most appreciated.

Rockie

Since we have PTO, medical and dental appointments are taken as part of PTO (for hourly people). Doctors and dentists usually only work 9-5 or 8-5 which is the same time we work, so it's not possible to make appts. before or after hours. Salaried people are not required to use their PTO time for this.

Companies that have sick leave generally let employees use sick leave for these types of appointments.

Hunter1

This is a difficult one to monitor, but our policy is much like yours: If you're sick enough to take the day off work, then it's sick time. If you merely make an appt to see the dr or dentist, then it's personal time. I don't know about VA and SC, but around here, medical providers have evening and Saturday hours, and even Sunday hours for walk-in treatment.

Rockie

>This is a difficult one to monitor, but our
>policy is much like yours: If you're sick
>enough to take the day off work, then it's sick
>time. If you merely make an appt to see the dr
>or dentist, then it's personal time. I don't
>know about VA and SC, but around here, medical
>providers have evening and Saturday hours, and
>even Sunday hours for walk-in treatment.

Hunter: I think your medical providers must have a different worth ethic than they do in SC. When I ask my doctor for the first appointment of the day, it's 8:30. When I ask for the last appointment of the day, it's no later than 3:30. My dentist is much the same way. To make a 3:30 appointment, I have to leave work around 2:45 and drive across traffic to the other side of town. It's at least 4:30 before they are finished with me, so since I live on that side of town, I just go home when I usually would never be home that early. I have heard of providers in other areas working earlier and later and on Saturdays and Sundays. The only places you get like that around here are the urgent care centers or the emergency room.

rad

We don't have sick time so its either personal or vacation. If the appointment is a treatment related to a FMLA approved illness its counted toward FMLA (which we pay for). We do not expect exempt employees to use anything if they come in a little late, leave a bit early, long lunch, etc for a dr appointment.

AJ SPHR

We allow employees to use their sick time balance for doctor appointments. As others have pointed out, many doctors do not have "off-hour" appointments available, and don't even get me started on the wait time when you're in the office trying to get in to see your doctor!

marc

Our policy is like AJ's. These types of appointments are sick time.

JM in ATL

I don't think my answer will help you, but...

We don't separate sick, vacation, personal, etc. days. Employees earn a certain amount of time and they can use however they see fit. So if they want to make a Dr.'s appointment in the middle of the day, then they do so. They just deduct the time from their bank of hours.

I know, it doesn't help, but in your case I would get a vote from your policy makers to see what they think it should be classified under. As long as you have an agreement amongst management, you can consistently deduct time for all ees.

AnneLa

We allow our employees to use sick time in at least one hour increments and personal time in at least 2 hour increments. It's their choice on what type of time they'd like to use.