Ask HN: How does unlimited PTO work out in practice? | Hacker News Reader

Ask HN: How does unlimited PTO work out in practice?

Many tech companies offer unlimited PTO as a benefit these days. However, there are rumors that this ends up working out worse than standard PTO since there's guilt with taking too much time off.

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If I were in the situation of unlimited PTO I'd probably track myself and take 5 weeks a year, just so that I can keep the guilt out of my conscious. I'd probably make that clear to my manager as well and put it on him/her to let me know if there are any problems.

I guess I should consider myself very fortunate. It works out very well for me. I've worked under an unlimited PTO policy for several years now (at two different companies).

It does not "depend on management approval." Approval for time off is automatic; it is only necessary to coordinate with your supervisor and/or team to make sure tasks can be handled by coworkers in your absence. Vacations were typically one to three weeks, sometimes longer for international travel or special situations.

There is no "pressure to keep the PTO profile low" or limit the amount of time. It isn't even tracked.

It's not a "loss of a benefit." I've been able to use more time off than before, even with the most generous PTO benefits at prior organizations.

It's a terrible policy, and unfair across the company as it depends on local manager approval. Have a workaholic manager? Enjoy getting less vacation approved than your peers.

Keep track of it yourself in a spreadsheet.

Don't go under your previous amount (make sure you're still getting your three weeks per year, or whatever), but don't go too far over unless you're really confident.

Don't "bank up" too much virtual time. Like don't say "I'm going to take no time this year and then a whole month next June". Because if you're fired/leave in May, you get nothing.

Evil Life Pro Tip: If you're going to quit soon, and you want to milk the system? Feel free to take as much as you want.

From an employer's perspective, they don't owe you anything. This is a good thing for them, because when your company gets acquired by another company which has different policies than your company, they won't owe you a dime. While, if your company has a policy of 20 days off and your company got acquired, they owe you $$ amounting to the PTO days you haven't used up.

Source: happened in my previous company but the acquisition happened right after my 8 week vacation, so I didn't get any $$.

Having said that, I also was very lucky to have a good manager who really didn't mind how much vacation I was taking as long as the work was getting done.

Guilt, or pressure come bonus time to keep the PTO profile low so it shows (what some cynical management teams call) "passion"?

I find myself taking a lot more one-offs than I did before. Previously, when I would bank PTO, I would avoid taking a day off to do something around the house or play a new video game that came out. Now, I don't worry about it as much and take the time, which I think is the point of having PTO anyway.

I have probably taken 4 weeks off total in the past year.

Don't ever forget that this isn't a benefit, it's the loss of a benefit. Let's say you don't take vacation out of guilt or events - under the traditional regime, you'd at least get the hours as accumulated salary. Not any more.

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