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I think 10 days vacation is usually standard in many companies?
Counting the weekends, that's pretty much a two week standard vacation.
Most places i've worked, the more years you work, you get more vacation days per year, so if you worked for five years, you'd have a month's worth of vacation days.
I've certainly used sick days in the past whenever I did not have enough PTO to cover, or some days I just didn't want to go into work.
Two weeks is not enough vacation, but it is what it is. Have you ever asked if you can take an extra week unpaid? It sounds like it would be worth it to you.
I get four weeks vacation, three personal days, and six sick days. I use every bit of it. I can work from home if I am too sick for the long commute(and don't want to infect everyone around me) but well enough to put in a full day, so that helps a lot. I do use sick days for my own doctor and dentist visits as well as taking my son to his. If you can do that, schedule a routine visit first thing in the mornring and have the rest of the day for yourself, and use that as a sick day.
There are a lot of martyrs on this thread. Your company will fire you at the drop of a hat once it suits them. Live your life.
As for everybody giving OP grief for wanting to take a day off for her daughters birthday, get over yourselves. Why shouldn’t OP be able to do this if she wishes? Why do you judge?
Just pointing out what the OP already knows....
She's been there two years, so clearly knows how much time off she can have.
She's used a lot of her time....for whatever reasons.
She wants more days, but can't get them the honest way, under her employer's system
She can lie to get the time off she needs. People do, all the time. That doesn't make it right.
She can also do the things she'd like around her work schedule.
I said that I get her frustration. There are times in our lives when we have, or make of our own accord -- like a birthday or anniversary celebration -- other commitments and work gets in the way of what we'd rather do -- or need to do. ((Look at how many people are trying to care for elderly relatives, or have a sick family member.....you don't think they may need more time off also. Most of us have been in some kind of similar situation at one time or another.))
But it is what it is. Maybe her life is so full of activities and other things she should work part-time. There are plenty of people for whom that's the case.
Just pointing out what the OP already knows....
She's been there two years, so clearly knows how much time off she can have.
She's used a lot of her time....for whatever reasons.
She wants more days, but can't get them the honest way, under her employer's system
She can lie to get the time off she needs. People do, all the time. That doesn't make it right.
She can also do the things she'd like around her work schedule.
I said that I get her frustration. There are times in our lives when we have, or make of our own accord -- like a birthday or anniversary celebration -- other commitments and work gets in the way of what we'd rather do -- or need to do. ((Look at how many people are trying to care for elderly relatives, or have a sick family member.....you don't think they may need more time off also. Most of us have been in some kind of similar situation at one time or another.))
But it is what it is. Maybe her life is so full of activities and other things she should work part-time. There are plenty of people for whom that's the case.
Most people I know with these issues (and I know a lot of people who are single parents, are caring for elderly relatives, have spouses who travel a lot, etc.) accommodate these issues by finding work that is more flexible. The OP seems to have found a rigid job that doesn’t allow any flexibility with schedule and doesn’t have much vacation time. She refuses to look for a new job. That’s on her. Even if the new job still offers 10 days of vacation, it might still be more flexible in terms of allowing her to work extra some days to make up for time later.
As for everybody giving OP grief for wanting to take a day off for her daughters birthday, get over yourselves. Why shouldn’t OP be able to do this if she wishes? Why do you judge?
You must be new around here, welcome to City Data (Yes, I know you aren't actually new, but asking why people judge, you may as well ask them why they post! lol!)
Quote:
Originally Posted by RamenAddict
Most people I know with these issues (and I know a lot of people who are single parents, are caring for elderly relatives, have spouses who travel a lot, etc.) accommodate these issues by finding work that is more flexible. The OP seems to have found a rigid job that doesn’t allow any flexibility with schedule and doesn’t have much vacation time. She refuses to look for a new job. That’s on her. Even if the new job still offers 10 days of vacation, it might still be more flexible in terms of allowing her to work extra some days to make up for time later.
yeah, I'm with you on this. I would not be able to work a job with only 2 weeks off and no flexibility. I am salaried and take PTO on days that I am completely out of the office, unless I'm working from home. But if I need to leave for part of the day, come in late, leave early, those are all considered full work days. No one cares about the hours my butt is in a chair, they care about the work getting done. I'm the only person in my role, so it's all on me to manage my workload, and no one else is being unduly burdened by having to do my work if I'm not there. Sometimes, yes, I get swamped and people do end up having to wait a little longer than is ideal, but if something is truly urgent, it gets prioritized.
I'm not saying I've had a work environment like this my entire career, but after 3 decades, I've earned it, and I'm not giving it up.
I really hope you are not my coworker whom I have to pick up the slack for your mental health days. This is precisely why employers start pulling back on the strings because of these types of abuses, and you actually are encouraging lying and how to get away with it. Unbelievable.
Not encouraging lying - it depends on how you define mental health. I get a lump sum that can be used for any kind of day off including holidays so I don’t have to lie. However if I was in this person’s shoes I might. I have never had a separate sick bucket.
Not encouraging lying - it depends on how you define mental health. I get a lump sum that can be used for any kind of day off including holidays so I don’t have to lie. However if I was in this person’s shoes I might. I have never had a separate sick bucket.
Taking time off for someone’s birthday or anniversary to go out or on vacation is not a “sick day” by any stretch of the imagination. I know people who take mental health days and I have no problem with that, but typically when people do that they are not going out and about and enjoying themselves...
If the work/life balance is unsatisfactory, and the company is rigid & unwilling to negotiate to a compromise that ultimately benefits both the employer and the employee - I'd find a different job.
"All my doctors are 40 minute drive from here on "my side of town" so cannot just take a lunch to do them either."
You're in DFW where there are plenty of doctors closer to your side of town. I can't imagine blowing off my health rather than just finding closer doctors.
I will post an unpopular opinion. I say call in sick, meet your daughter and spend a day together, however not in the close proximity to your workplace. Don't tell anybody at work about your family or who is flying when or where. The less they know the better. If it is Friday you are taking as a sick day, then avoid talking about it on Monday. If asked how your weekend went just say "fine".
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(Yes, I know you aren't actually new, but asking why people judge, you may as well ask them why they post! lol!)
