Anybody else not use enough PTO thoughout the year?

[Nash B.]

We get 3 PT days on January 1st that have to be used that year, and 2 weeks of vacation in July that don't expire.

[Tyrone Biggums]

After 13 years, I take every valuable second of my 4 weeks, and I'll usually slip a few half-days in as well.

[GhostTX]

Lol. Why do you guys have such a hard time taking a vacation, or just a 3 or 4 day weekend here or there? Do your bosses give you a hard time or something? If so I'd tell them to get bent. You get PTO for a reason, and I'd bet dollars to pesos none of them have ever lost a day of vacation either.

This.

And I have plenty of ways to burn my time during vacation. It's a sad state of affairs if you can't find ways to relax. Heck, even veggin' out doing nothing can be fun. With my schedule and family, a few hours of quiet is awesome.

I have a co-worker that has 5 weeks of vacation time. He'll blow through a week or two during the year, have some odd-days off here and there, but November through Christmas he takes every Friday off for a 4-day work week.

I generally have 5 weeks of PTO every year, and 2.5 weeks of company paid holidays (which are ironically at the end of the year). Thats quite a bit of time off when there are a lot of new projects that we're trying to win currently. I would say the main thing preventing me from taking of is still myself however...being young I'm still in the "prove myself and change the world" Phase. I haven't yet been beaten down enough to realize I can just chill out and get the same results.

My Bosses rarely ask for me to give up time, but this year has been tough for the defense industry and it's not getting better. Proposals and development projects take up alot of effort on short notice, especially when you have a program you are over with regards to production support.

I spoke with a guy who was saying he hadn't taken one day off for the year. I was like, is it because this place (the job) couldn't live without you and cease to function for a week or because you're just afraid to take the time off. He mulled it over and finally said he was just afraid to leave.

Screw that mentality. One of my mantras is, "I've never met a guy on his death bed that wished he spent more time at work."

[NTexas_V-Star]

"is it true that if you dont use it... you lose it???"

god bless.

"is that a serious question?"

Man, I'm going to give some of you guys some valuable advice. No one on their deathbed is thinking,"Man, I wished I worked more." Take a trip, finish a project that needs your attention, or work on a new hobby you've always wanted to try. They give it to you for a reason, and any boss giving you shit about using it isn't worth a damn any way.

[Big A]

I get 8 hours of PTO a pay check (2 weeks) that comes out to 208 hours a year which is 5.2 weeks a year...

I'm salary so if I come in and work half a day, I don't have to take PTO...

if I take PTO then do any work from home... I don't have to use my PTO for that day..

Same here, and work out of the house. If I need to take a long lunch, and head to Home Depot or wherever, no need to take PTO. Being that we don't ever lose our PTO, I really wish that they would pay me the cash value at the end of each year, rather than schedule time off tht I'm actually working.

[mstng86]

Yep, been there too many times, but usually with our legal department. Finance usually has someone on call during the busy times, but legal has always been a challenge.

oh no doubt, f trying to find someone in legal or finding ANYONE who has the authority to sign off on something.

[Big A]

You would be surprised how many companies accounting offices are not around the last two weeks of the year.

Yep, been there too many times, but usually with our legal department. Finance usually has someone on call during the busy times, but legal has always been a challenge.

[2165 Turbo Rail]

Lol. Why do you guys have such a hard time taking a vacation, or just a 3 or 4 day weekend here or there? Do your bosses give you a hard time or something? If so I'd tell them to get bent. You get PTO for a reason, and I'd bet dollars to pesos none of them have ever lost a day of vacation either.

I get 8 hours of PTO a pay check (2 weeks) that comes out to 208 hours a year which is 5.2 weeks a year...

I'm salary so if I come in and work half a day, I don't have to take PTO...

if I take PTO then do any work from home... I don't have to use my PTO for that day..

[mstng86]

That's pretty standard if you're in finance. I, on the other hand, can and do take my two weeks whenever the fuck I want.

You would be surprised how many companies accounting offices are not around the last two weeks of the year.

[Ratt]

Boooo, that sucks.

That's pretty standard if you're in finance. I, on the other hand, can and do take my two weeks whenever the fuck I want.

[Big A]

Boooo, that sucks.

Yup, especially being that the fam likes to head down to Galveston in late June. We have scheduled around that mandate 3 times now.

Same for Christmas travel, but I fortunately can work from anywhere. This will be my first xmas home in 3 years.

[Strychnine]

the company mandates no PTO the last two weeks of a quarter.

Boooo, that sucks.

[The King]

"is it true that if you dont use it... you lose it???"

god bless.

Affirmative

[Big A]

No shit. I hear people talk about this all the time, and I just can't wrap my head around it.


They are willing to pay you to go do whatever you want to do. Wanna go skiing? Fuck it, go on Tuesday, they'll pay you! Hiking on Thursday?
Yup, you'll get paid to do that too. Hell, you could just sit on the couch and play with your dingdong all day and they'll still pay you.


I've never had unused vacation time and I can promise, without a doubt, that I never will.

For me personally, it's more a matter of the work that builds up while I am gone. My boss is great, and has no problem with me taking the time, but there is a reason that the company mandates no PTO the last two weeks of a quarter. Fortunately I am busy more than just those 8 weeks a year.