5 ms·

Unlimited vacation was actually pioneered in the U.S., and spread from there. Most famously popularized by Netflix in its early days, but popular in law firms b

Unlimited vacation was actually pioneered in the U.S., and spread from there. Most famously popularized by Netflix in its early days, but popular in law firms before that. https://www.reddit.com/r/ExperiencedDevs/comments/nq2ph2/i_researched_the_origin_of_unlimited_pto_at/ https://www.reddit.com/r/ExperiencedDevs/comments/nq2ph2/i_r...

chii 2y ago
It's not actually unlimited. In fact, by not providing a fixed amount, and calling it unlimited, it lets managers put peer pressure onto people into taking less vacations than if they'd made a fixed amount!
- zarzavat 2y ago
  It should be called unknown vacation. There’s a limit, you just don’t know where it is. I assume if you took the UK legal minimum of 5.6 weeks for example, you would get fired.
- kcarter80 2y ago
  It is unlimited if the employee is talented and good at advocating for themselves. It isn't if they are meek or mid. In general: it's good to let your employer know that you value your time. If you don't suck, they'll respect you more, not less.
- marpstar 2y ago
  To add to that: it also can't be "banked" (and thereby paid out after departure). Companies give free PTO because real "paid time off" has to be tracked as a liability on their books; if you haven't "earned" anything and they don't "credit" you, you aren't "owed" you anything when you leave/are terminated.
  - 1over137 2y ago
    What does PTO mean here?
    - wisemang 2y ago
      Personal time off (or maybe sometimes paid time off)
- barbazoo 2y ago
  I’ve experienced unlimited PTO myself and have yet to see any kind of pressure. YMMV obviously but it’s not as universal as people say it is.
  - withinboredom 2y ago
    As have I. When I told my manager I wanted to use my unlimited paid time off to work half-days for the rest of the year ... the look I got was my answer. No.
    - barbazoo 2y ago
      Have you tried making reasonable requests though and were they denied as well?
- tadfisher 2y ago
  Where I work we call it "minimum vacation", so you're required to take at least that number of days off, but you can request as much as you like over that.
nuz 2y ago
Americans are assumed to not make use of much of any of that unlimited vacation, whereas in europe it's actually ok to

chii 2y ago

It's not actually unlimited. In fact, by not providing a fixed amount, and calling it unlimited, it lets managers put peer pressure onto people into taking less vacations than if they'd made a fixed amount!

zarzavat 2y ago
It should be called unknown vacation. There’s a limit, you just don’t know where it is. I assume if you took the UK legal minimum of 5.6 weeks for example, you would get fired.
kcarter80 2y ago
It is unlimited if the employee is talented and good at advocating for themselves. It isn't if they are meek or mid. In general: it's good to let your employer know that you value your time. If you don't suck, they'll respect you more, not less.
marpstar 2y ago
To add to that: it also can't be "banked" (and thereby paid out after departure). Companies give free PTO because real "paid time off" has to be tracked as a liability on their books; if you haven't "earned" anything and they don't "credit" you, you aren't "owed" you anything when you leave/are terminated.
- 1over137 2y ago
  What does PTO mean here?
  - wisemang 2y ago
    Personal time off (or maybe sometimes paid time off)
barbazoo 2y ago
I’ve experienced unlimited PTO myself and have yet to see any kind of pressure. YMMV obviously but it’s not as universal as people say it is.
- withinboredom 2y ago
  As have I. When I told my manager I wanted to use my unlimited paid time off to work half-days for the rest of the year ... the look I got was my answer. No.
  - barbazoo 2y ago
    Have you tried making reasonable requests though and were they denied as well?
tadfisher 2y ago
Where I work we call it "minimum vacation", so you're required to take at least that number of days off, but you can request as much as you like over that.

nuz 2y ago

Americans are assumed to not make use of much of any of that unlimited vacation, whereas in europe it's actually ok to