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Alas, this isn't sufficient. For the same reason that unlimited vacation results in people actually taking less vacation, if you say this to someone without a t

Alas, this isn't sufficient. For the same reason that unlimited vacation results in people actually taking less vacation, if you say this to someone without a ton of security in their position they will work approximately as much as their boss. If the boss keeps sending emails on Friday there is no way that other people will really feel secure disconnecting.

davidw 5y ago
Bingo. People are social animals and we take our cues from other people. "Unlimited vacation" sounds good but is not great in practice.
- skrtskrt 5y ago
  Unlimited vacation is, like you said, dependent on social cues. Plenty of places with unlimited vacation cue or even pressure employees to take a minimum amount of vacation.
  - toomuchtodo 5y ago
    How much vacation you have is how much the company is required to pay out as earned income when you separate from the org. Anything else is generosity that can be rescinded without notice or recourse. Edit: u/babycake's comment says it better: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=29879742 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=29879742
  - dbbk 5y ago
    Yes, this is extremely easily solved. We have unlimited holiday, but you must take off at least 28 days (the statutory minimum in the UK).
- babycake 5y ago
  Unlimited Vacation is great if there is a base guarantee of vacation given to the employees. That is, give them their usual 2 weeks (or more) of PTO in their contract. Then anything on top of that is unlimited. But companies know full well what they're doing. They know that if they replace guaranteed PTO with unlimited, not only does the employee take less vacation (more bang for the company's buck), but they also get to skirt around state laws on paying for unused PTO when the employee quits. Plus, without any guaranteed PTO, companies can just decline your request for vacation any time. They can say they're in busy season, or they need office coverage, whatever. Whereas with guaranteed vacation, the manager would have a harder time declining those hours you earned due to bad optics. Unlimited vacation without a guaranteed PTO base is a scam.

davidw 5y ago

Bingo. People are social animals and we take our cues from other people. "Unlimited vacation" sounds good but is not great in practice.

skrtskrt 5y ago
Unlimited vacation is, like you said, dependent on social cues. Plenty of places with unlimited vacation cue or even pressure employees to take a minimum amount of vacation.
- toomuchtodo 5y ago
  How much vacation you have is how much the company is required to pay out as earned income when you separate from the org. Anything else is generosity that can be rescinded without notice or recourse. Edit: u/babycake's comment says it better: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=29879742 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=29879742
- dbbk 5y ago
  Yes, this is extremely easily solved. We have unlimited holiday, but you must take off at least 28 days (the statutory minimum in the UK).
babycake 5y ago
Unlimited Vacation is great if there is a base guarantee of vacation given to the employees. That is, give them their usual 2 weeks (or more) of PTO in their contract. Then anything on top of that is unlimited. But companies know full well what they're doing. They know that if they replace guaranteed PTO with unlimited, not only does the employee take less vacation (more bang for the company's buck), but they also get to skirt around state laws on paying for unused PTO when the employee quits. Plus, without any guaranteed PTO, companies can just decline your request for vacation any time. They can say they're in busy season, or they need office coverage, whatever. Whereas with guaranteed vacation, the manager would have a harder time declining those hours you earned due to bad optics. Unlimited vacation without a guaranteed PTO base is a scam.