Paid Time Off (PTO)

Here's the deal: we spent way too much time researching PTO policies to figure this thing out. We studied BLS data, benchmarked against companies we admire, navigated the regulatory maze of 18 different states, and emerged with something we're genuinely proud of.

This policy is designed around a simple premise - you work hard, you should recharge regularly, and life happens whether we plan for it or not. So we've built in vacation time, sick leave, bereavement, family leave, and coverage for everything from jury duty to short-term disability.

The goal isn't to squeeze the maximum number of hours out of you; it's to make sure you actually stay happy while creating happiness for others. Read on for the specifics, which are (we promise) more generous than you'd expect and less complicated than most.

• Goals
• The Numbers
• Vacation + Personal + Holidays (VPH)
  
  • VPH Totals
  • VPH Accrual Method
  • VPH Banking
• Sick Leave
• Jury Duty
• Bereavement
• Short-Term Disability
• Family Leave
• FAQs

Goals

It's important to understand the underlying goals of our PTO policy, so that you know why we set it up this way. Here are the goals:

• Encourage frequent vacation and family time, so your batteries stay fresh and your mental space stays nimble and curious. It is hard to "create happiness" if you yourself are not happy.
• Allow for intermittent personal time (ie. non-planned vacations) where life pulls you away from the keyboard unexpectedly or for ad hoc events
• Provide flexibility in the observance of holidays, giving freedom to those of different geographical or cultural backgrounds to choose their own rather than adhere to the official list of one country
• Cover unforeseen periods of illness or accident, giving you peace of mind that you can recover without using vacation time. For longer health issues, provide a soft landing so that you can return to the office in due time.
• Cover terrible random-ass events like a death in the family or jury duty without using vacation time or going unpaid
• Do all of the above with generous allotments, surpassing industry averages, where it does not conflict with our company goals
• Create a support framework for customer support and on-call, where highly desired times of year are planned proactively
• Make you feel "non-gamed" by those making these policies; ie. leaders actually care about your well-being as opposed to being forced begrudingly into industry norms

As you read through this policy and wonder why something is the way it is, scroll back up to this section and take another look. We hope that these goals answer those questions.

The Numbers

Vacation + Personal + Holidays (VPH)

There is no difference in our PTO policy between vacation time, personal days, and holidays. They are all the same: days you spend away from work doing things you want.

Note that the word "holiday" is used strictly here, meaning real, actual holidays such as Christmas, New Year's, and Thanksgiving. Those holidays are not treated differently from this - they are in the same pot. In whatever country, culture, or faith-tradition you identify with, you are free to pick the holidays that are meaningful to you and request those days as paid time off.

We call this entire pot of days "VPH" for brevity's sake, but you'll know it as your primary vacation time, which you use to take time off, have fun, observe an important day, or deal with ad hoc appointments.

VPH Totals

VPH is the only type of PTO that changes in amount depending on your seniority, and there are two levels:

1. Employees with 0-3 years of service receive 30 days of VPH, consisting of 10 holidays and 20 base days.
2. Employees with 4+ years of service receive 35 days of VPH, consisting of 10 holidays and 25 base days.

Again, to clarify, holidays are not a standalone category, nor are they treated differently than other VPH days. We only mention them here, in the above breakdown, to provide transparency into how the totals were calculated.

VPH Accrual Method

There are generally two schools of PTO accrual: lump sum and per-pay-period.

Per-pay-period methods make it difficult to take a vacation in January or February because you haven't had enough pay periods in the year to earn enough PTO to travel for more than a few days. Lump sum methods are challenging for employers because new employees can leave mid-year with payout rights to PTO they have never earned.

We use a hybrid method that combines both approaches.

On January 1 of each year, you will receive a lump sum of 10 days, equal to the holiday portion of your VPH allotment. You can then immediately request all of the major holidays of the year or use it to travel in January or February before you have accrued enough per-pay-period days.

Beyond the January 1 lump sum, you will additionally receive a certain number of VPH hours per pay period throughout the year based on your seniority:

1. Employees with 0-3 years of service will accrue VPH hours at a rate of 6.6667 hours per completed pay period.
2. Employees with 4+ years of service will accrue VPH hours at a rate of 8.3333 hours per completed pay period.

New employees entering the company mid-year will be given a pro-rated amount of lump-sum days to offset the January 1 holiday gift (between 1 and 10, depending on when they joined). They will then begin accruing hours of VPH per pay period, according to the same 0-3 year accrual level above.

VPH Banking

The number one goal of our PTO policy is for you to actually vacation and spend time with family on a regular basis. Because of this, we want you to actually use your PTO time, not leave it to accrue forever.

The US Federal government allows PTO to roll over indefinitely with no caps, so lifelong employees famously retire with years of PTO waiting to be paid out. In the Washington DC area, it is common to hear stories about how someone is retiring, but "first taking their two years of accrued PTO" before retirement kicks in.

This may sound lucrative, but it leads to employees who become hardened and hollow, focusing on the clock and chasing numbers rather than staying nimble, fresh, and curious.

To discourage this, the VPH bucket allows a max accrual of 10 days more than each employee's annual allowance, which means:

1. Employees with 0-3 years of service can bank up to a max of 40 VPH days.
2. Employees with 4+ years of service can bank up to a max of 45 VPH days.

If your VPH balance reaches the max level of accrual, no additional accrual will occur. You must begin using VPH days to begin accruing more.

Need to borrow from the future? We allow that (ie. having a negative balance) up to 5 days.

Upon separation from the company, your VPH balance will be paid out in full or, in the rare case of a negative balance, deducted from your final paycheck.

Please use your VPH time. Go on vacation and unwind. Travel somewhere you've never been, or take a week to organize the storage room and attic. In the summer, take more 3-day weekends to go camping. Whatever helps clear your mind, do it frequently.

Sick Leave

Sick leave exists for one simple reason: you should not have to use vacation time when you're puking your guts out, running a fever, or dealing with a child in that condition.

All employees receive 8 days of sick leave per year, given as a lump sum on January 1 and prorated for new hires based on their start date.

Seniority doesn't matter. Illness affects everyone equally, and it isn't something you can plan for.

Sick leave is meant for actual illness - yours or an immediate family member's. The flu, strep throat, food poisoning, migraines, the occasional mental health day when you need to reset. We're not going to nitpick what counts as "sick enough" unless there's an obvious pattern of abuse.

If you're out sick for 7 or more consecutive days, that's the trigger point where you need to start a short-term disability claim. At that point, we're no longer talking about the flu; we're talking about something more serious that needs proper coverage and documentation.

Unlike VPH, sick leave does not accrue or roll over year to year, and it's not paid out when you leave the company. Use it when you need it, and hopefully you don't need it much.

Jury Duty

If you get called for jury duty, you should go. It's a civic duty, and we're not going to penalize you for participating in the legal system.

There is no cap on jury duty days. If you get stuck on a three-week trial, so be it. We'll cover your time. Just provide the Accounting department with your jury summons and keep your team lead informed about the schedule and any updates along the way.

You should pursue any jury duty stipend your local court provides, and we won't require you to hand it over to us. Consider it beer money for your trouble.

No rollover, no payout at separation. It's unlimited while you need it, and that's the whole point.

Bereavement

Losing someone you care about is terrible, and the last thing you should be worrying about during that time is whether you have enough PTO banked to attend a funeral or simply grieve.

Bereavement leave is separate from VPH and sick leave, and it's given as a lump sum on January 1, with proration for new hires.

You get 5 days for immediate family (spouse, partner, child, parent, sibling) and 3 days for extended family (grandparents, in-laws, aunts, uncles, close friends who were like family).

If you need more time beyond this, please speak with your team lead, the Accounting department, or PW. We won't be rigid about it if there are exceptional circumstances. Grief doesn't follow a schedule, and everyone processes loss in their own unique way. Sometimes, there are physical arrangements to be made that you, as the primary caregiver, may be responsible for, which can expand your time commitment. We'll work with you, but we may require some additional explanation about who you lost and the situation in general so that we get a sense of what you're going through.

Like sick leave, bereavement does not roll over year to year and is not paid out at separation.

Short-Term Disability

Sometimes life throws you a curveball that's bigger than the flu but not permanent. Surgery, a serious injury, a health crisis that requires extended recovery time - these are the scenarios where short-term disability kicks in.

All employees are covered by our STD policy at 67% of your regular pay, with a maximum of $2,000 per week, for up to 12 weeks.*

The company pays for this coverage in full - there is no employee contribution required.

There's a 7-day waiting period before STD coverage begins, which aligns perfectly with our sick leave policy. Use sick leave for the first week, and if you're still unable to work after 7 days, the STD claim starts automatically.

You don't need to worry about navigating insurance companies alone. The Accounting department will help you through the process of filing a claim and will work with you and your medical providers to ensure everything is documented properly.

*still being finalized, may change or apply depending on location

Family Leave (aka. Maternity Leave)

Having a child - whether through birth or adoption - is a major life event that deserves proper time and support. Our family leave policy reflects that reality with generous, paid time off.

For birthing parents who are the primary caregiver: 12 weeks at 100% pay.

This is structured as a combination of short-term disability (which typically covers 12 weeks for childbirth at 67% pay) plus a company "top-up" to bring you to 100% pay for the full 12 weeks. We handle the coordination between STD and payroll, so you don't have to think about it.

For adoptive parents who are the primary caregiver: 6 weeks at 100% pay.

Adoption is just as valid a path to parenthood, and you need time to bond with your child, handle paperwork, and adjust to your new family dynamic.

For non-birthing parents or secondary caregivers: 4 weeks at 100% pay.

This applies to spouses and partners, whether the child is biological or adopted. Four weeks gives you meaningful time to support your spouse or partner, bond with the new child, and handle the chaos that comes with a new addition to the family.

Family leave does not roll over year to year and is not paid out at separation. It exists for the specific purpose of welcoming a new child into your family. It must be used within the first year of the newborn child.

If you have questions about how family leave coordinates with VPH, Sick Leave, or STD - or if your situation is more complex than the scenarios outlined here - talk to your team lead, the Accounting department, or PW. We'll make sure you get the full time and support you're entitled to.

FAQs

Is there a PTO pool, or a way that VPH or Sick Leave can be pooled or gifted between employees?

Not at this time. We may consider it in the future. Typically, PTO pools are used at organizations where the allowances are stingy or STD policies don't exist, so employees band together to share their days. We do not believe that a pool will be necessary.

Do we allow negative VPH balances?

Yes, up to 5 days can be borrowed from the future. In the event of a separation, any negative balance will be deducted from the final paycheck.  We believe that borrowing against future VPH should be very rare, given the policy that has been created.

This is a big transition, and I had a big trip planned for Feb 2026. What happens now?

Everyone resets to the new policy on January 1, 2026. Between the lump sum of 10 days given up front and the ability to borrow 5 days from the future, we are confident that any early trips that have already been planned will likely be covered.

I already requested PTO for early 2026 before this new policy was announced. Is that covered under the old Unlimited policy or the new one?

On January 1, 2026, this new PTO policy will wipe the slate clean and all PTO from that point forward will be subject to this policy.  Any PTO already requested and approved in Zoho People will need to be requested again so that the proper category (eg "VPH") can be applied.

I haven't used much from the Unlimited policy over the last couple of years. Do I get any extra time from that to roll over?

No, this new policy clears the slate to zero for everyone equally. We announced that our PTO policy would be changing a couple of months ago and then in earnest at the end of November, so there has been time at the end of 2025 to take time off under the Unlimited policy.

Does this apply to all employees or only those within the USA?

Vacation and sick leave are important for all team members, so our PTO policy covers all full-time employees, no matter your location or method of pay.  There may be some technical details that vary depending on your location (eg, Short-Term Disability coverage may not include those outside the USA), but the bulk of the policy applies to all full-time employees.

How do company retreats or conferences work? Does that require PTO of some kind?

Traveling for business, whether a conference or company retreat, does not count toward PTO. You are still working. Just in a different way!

Is there a way to review my 2025 hours to see how much I used last year, and how that compares to the new policy? 

Yes, and we highly recommend doing that to get a sense of whether you will be fine or need to trim a little. You should be able to see your totals in Zoho People, but if not, send an email to accounting so that we can pull a report for you.

What about half days? Can I request partial day VPH or Sick Leave? 

Yes, and that will probably happen throughout the year several times. In fact, that's what the "P" stands for in VPH: "Personal" time. If you haven't gotten permission from your team lead to shift your hours for that day, or you just want to take a quarter or half day instead, then request 0.25 or 0.5 as VPH. We expect a lot of this, and built that into the allowances.

What if I run out of sick leave (ie. I go over 8 days in a year)

Our PTO policy includes a maximum of 8 total sick days per year. If, god-forbid, you go over that and need to take off more time, you would need to use VPH time to cover the additional sick leave. If you are out of VPH time as well, you would need to request unpaid time off.

What happens after VPH runs out? Are there longer times I can be away?

Our PTO policy does not include coverage for sabbaticals or for long periods beyond the allotted VPH time defined in the policy. If you would like to go on a sabbatical or multi-week trip that exceeds your VPH accrual rate, we encourage you to plan for it by scheduling it in the future when you have the VPH to cover it. You may be able to request and get approved for unpaid time off, but that is currently not a supported scenario of our PTO policy, so do not make plans ahead of time without talking to your team lead or supervisor and requesting permission.  Periods of unpaid time off may affect your healthcare coverage as well, as our healthcare policy is based on full-time employment without gaps.

How many days is a "week", as referred to by things like family leave and STD? 

All weeks are 5 days. So 4 weeks of leave is equal to 20 business days.

Does this policy align with FMLA?

FMLA won't apply to us for the foreseeable future, if ever, and the reason is technical in nature. While it does apply to companies with 50+ employees, there is an "individual eligibility" check that no one here will pass because it requires that, individually, you are within 75 miles of the other 50 employees. Weird, but that's the way it is.

We already comply with it for the most part because our family leave policy is 12 weeks for the birthing primary caregiver.

Our spouse/partner coverage (which the FMLA also sets as 12 weeks) does not align with our 6/4 policy, but in the event we have to comply, we will grant that unpaid.

Does Family Leave (aka Maternity Leave, aka FMLA) apply to other types of caregiving, such as elderly parents or grandchildren?

No. Family Leave applies directly to immediate family, primarily newborn children within the first year of their birth.  However, we may allow case by case exceptions for In Loco Parentis relationships (ie. If you have day-to-day parental responsibilities such as financial support, daily care, etc.) for extended family where that extended family is in dire need.