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Busi

In: Business and Management

Submitted By rvazquez6
Words 1233
Pages 5
Regina Vazquez
BUSI 645
Individual Assignment #3
November 20, 2014 Discretionary benefits are an important commodity to both employees and employers. Today, it is expected to have some type of leave program and companies, although not required by law to have them, use these benefits to attract the best talent. They are also a way of rewarding good performance. Employees’ use of paid time off gives them the chance to rest and relax without having to worry about decreased pay. They then come back recharged and ready to excel, which benefits the company. “Most firms that provide high-quality benefits do so because they think it is the right thing to do and allows them to maintain a competitive edge with improved recruitment, retention, productivity, and morale” (Perrin et. Al, 2007, p. 1098). The problem lies with having a program that is flexible for the employees but yet doesn’t interfere with company operations. Abuse of leave programs creates an environment of mistrust and unexpected absences can cause delays and more work for co-workers. Firms must consider the many factors, such as number of employees, ages, and the type of work, when deciding what type of leave program to have. There is not a one size fits all design. For the employer, their ultimate goal is to have a leave program that prioritizes the organization’s goals first. Most companies have a traditional leave program whereas leave is separated into vacation days, sick days, and personal days. Vacation days are scheduled in advance to ensure employee needs don’t conflict with work related operations. The problem with sick days, as described in the case study, was that employees were abusing those days and using them for personal or family situations. These unexpected absences put a strain on management when they have to find a solution to the employee not being there at the last moment. It also makes other employees have to stop what they were already doing to fill in for that person when schedules need to be met. The company felt that these days could have been scheduled in advance. Superior knows the system in place now is not working and there needs to be a change. “Workers with many family responsibilities often find that family concerns interfere with their work and what they most need is a work arrangement that would allow them to handle family concerns and perform their job at a high level” (Halpern, 2005, p. 159). Superior changing there leave program from a traditional system to a paid time off system will definitely reduce unscheduled absences. Under this plan, employees will have leave days that can be used for anything, whether it is for vacation or for personal needs. If they know of something a day or two or even a week ahead of time, requesting to use one their paid time off days will give their management a heads up so they can find a work around if need be. Having leave days not strictly designated as vacation or as sick days will give the employee more flexibility to take care of needs outside of the office without abusing their sick days. The only alternative to unscheduled absences is disciplinary actions and that method is often used, but “studies are showing that paid-time-off banks are the most effective tool and eliminates the feeling of entitlement to sick that most employees have” (Birshel, 2004, p. 67). Besides decreasing unscheduled absences, going to a PTO format has other benefits for both the employee and employer. For the employer, having a PTO system will alleviate them from having to manage vacation or sick time and hold their employees accountable. “New paid time-off policies pool all forms of paid time off and make employees responsible for managing that time” (Federico & Goldsmith, 1998, p. 67). No longer will human resources have different pools of leave to manage and employees will be able to keep up with their days of paid time off. This will also benefit employees who desire to have more control over their personal needs. Having a PTO plan also keeps an employee honest with their employer. When sick days are used for personal reasons, the employee must lie to their supervisor to get a legitimate sick day. There are those people that are ok with this and feel comfortable abusing the privilege, but there are others who are truly in a bind with family or personal problems who had to do so in order to not lose income. Now the employee will be able to request a leave day without having to give an official reason to take care of personal issues. John Allen (2013) explains that other advantages to using a PTO program include recruitment and retention, respect for diversity, flexibility, and equality among all employees. There are a few downsides to a paid-time off program that should be considered. The biggest disadvantage is employees using all of their allotted days and then coming to work sick instead of taking a non-paid day off. Not only does the employee not meet their usual level of performance while sick, they could potentially spread something contagious and put other employees at risk of becoming sick and missing work. If employees view all of their PTO days as vacation days, they are less likely to stay home when they really should do so. A 1997 study by Hewlett Packard on PTO cited by Employee Benefits News (2000) highlighted some other disadvantages which concluded that a “PTO bank may be perceived as a take away by employees, it could increase the amount of paid leave days which equates to more cost for the employer, it can create difficult transition issues, and that there may be a large liability booked for unused days”. There are also upfront costs to the employer in the form of transitioning to the PTO program and having to pay employees for any unused leave in their current plan.

References
Allen, J. (2013, June 30). How paid-time-off policies level the playing field and bring more productivity. Smart Business. Retrieved from http://www.sbnonline.com/component/k2/28-columnist/26905-4john-allen-how-paid-time-off-policies-level-the-playing-field-and-bring-more-productivity
Birschel, D. (2004). Marking Time. Benefits Quarterly, 20(1), p. 67. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.liberty.edu:2048/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=12122783&site=ehost-live&scope=site
Halpern, D. F. (2005). How time-flexible work policies can reduce stress, improve health, and save money. Stress & Health: Journal Of The International Society For The Investigation Of Stress, 21(3), p. 157-168. doi:10.1002/smi.1049
Federico, R. F., & Goldsmith, H. B. (1998). Linking work/life benefits to performance. Compensation and Benefits Review, 30(4), 66-70. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/213666378?accountid=12085
Perrin, J., Fluet, C., Honberg, L., Anderson, B., Wells, N., Epstein, S., & Kuhlthau, K. (2007). Benefits for employees with children with special needs: Findings from the collaborative employee benefit study. Health Affairs, 26(4), p. 1096-1103. doi:10.1377/hlthaff.26.4.1096

Is it time to implement a paid time-off plan?. (2000). Employee Benefit News, 14(13), p. 52. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.liberty.edu:2048/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bth&AN=3722911&site=ehost-live&scope=site

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