Are all employers required to give employees paid vacation? I was told I had 56 hours paid time off a year. When I requested it, I was told to “use sick time — we don’t give paid vacation.” I’ve been working there for more than 3 years. Is this legal?
Employers are not required to offer paid vacation, however, most do.
For those who do offer it, how it is earned, used and paid out varies by the company policies and any requirements of the state laws.
If there isn’t a policy in writing, then various state laws govern how vacation is handled. In New York, it is lawful for employers to enforce a “use it or lose it” policy.
And depending on the policy, employers may have to pay for any earned but unused vacation should the employee’s employment end, whether voluntarily or involuntarily.
If what you were told is not in writing and there isn’t a practice of offering paid vacation for other employees, they might be in breach of an oral contract, but you likely will have a difficult time proving it. And then the question should be, do you want to work for such an employer?
I run a restaurant, and according to a new law passed this week I can’t hire based on a person’s height or weight. That is insane. Imagine walking into a fine establishment and the hostess or servers are short and fat? That may work for a diner, but not for a high-end establishment where there are well-heeled clientele paying top dollar. So are we all going to be sued now for trying to maintain a certain image?
Wow — your note gave me serious indigestion.
You are referring to the new law that prohibits employers and establishments from discriminating against employees or applicants based on body type — height and weight. So you are correct, it would be unlawful for you to stock up on talent who look like they were photoshopped from a fashion cover to appeal to patrons who have paid surgeons and fashion consultants to look the same while denying employment to people who look like the rest of us. By the way, want to know why the food tastes better at diners? Because they don’t serve it with a side of pretentiousness.
Gregory Giangrande has over 25 years of experience as a chief human resources executive. Hear Greg Wed. at 9:35 a.m. on iHeartRadio 710 WOR with Len Berman and Michael Riedel. Email: GoToGreg@NYPost.com. Follow: GoToGreg.com and on Twitter: @GregGiangrande