Noorah101

Ricky, where did you hear that is doable? IMO unpaid leave is something you need in an emergency situation because you've used up all your PTO. One does not negotiate unpaid leave at any point in an interview process. If you start saying you will need unpaid time regularly, or try to negotiate for such a thing, the employer will most likely look elsewhere.

You can ask about PTO, but you can't start talking about unpaid time right away, or at all (IMO) until after you're hired, and such need arises.

Rene

Ricky_85

Yes you are right, candidate should not talk about unpaid time off during their interviews. Nevertheless, from what I know, unpaid time off shouldn't be only for emergency.. After all, you are not asking the employer to pay for your day(s) off.

I know it's very different from Europe. If there's one thing I don't quite agree with the US (and I love the Country) is this very issue, that is the scarcity of free time the employee has.

limeynus

I have 3 weeks of PTO per year, that's my sick and vacation.

I work for a small employer who used to let (although it wasn't in the policies) me (well I was the only one that took advantage) take unpaid time off each year, I'd take about 5 days.

He has just decided on a whim to take that away. So now I'm back to my 120 hours a year. His reasoning being that it's too difficult for others to cover when I'm gone, it doesn't matter that no-one actually does cover for me, but that was his argument.

From my experiences, here in CA, unpaid time off is not the norm and from my experience larger employers seem less apt to offer such a benefit.

Ricky_85

3 weeks is nice

limeynus

It would be if it was just vacation time, but it's also my sick time allowance!

Michael

You'll get many opinions on the amount of time off if you read the following link.

http://britishexpats.com/forum/usa-5...nation-846642/

Ricky_85

I read your post in that thread saying companies in the Bay Area are offering 4 weeks PTO even to new arrivals... That's promising. And I hope it's the trend for more and more businesses even not in IT

FinnDiego

Agreed I don't see unpaid time off really as something to negotiate during the interview. You can ask about company policies around that, same as other relevant questions (sick time, PTO, holidays, health insurance, etc), but for something like that I'd expect it to be mostly a question-answer rather than a negotiation. The official policy won't really tell you whether people actually can take unpaid leave or not, but I agree it's not terribly common.

Vacation is possibly more open for negotiation in some places, although interestingly that was the one area my current employer wouldn't negotiate. Unpaid time off is a possibility, and something I see people occasionally use but not very often. People do take longer vacations than I'd have expected, but that's likely because we have a lot of people from India or China - they won't go back often, but when they do it'll be for several weeks at a time.

FWIW this I'm at a major technology company based in San Diego. Competition for talent and living costs aren't quite as crazy here as they are in Silicon Valley...

Phyzz

My new employer offers the opportunity to buy more vacation days, I believe it is up to 5 per year. They have to be taken last, with no option to carry them over unless there have been business reasons why you were not able to actually use them.

This is listed in the 'benefits' package.

Noorah101

I've been with the same company for 25 years. I am now up to getting 5 weeks (200 hours) PTO each year, and can save up to a maximum of 20 weeks (800) before I have to "use it or lose it".

I have taken unpaid time of a couple of times, I believe each time was 1 week, because I was taking a long vacation and used up my PTO.

We currently have a guy out on an unpaid leave of absence because he is going through chemotherapy.

So, although not always for an emergency, it's not something someone negotiates up front, but rather asks for when it becomes necessary. .. with the understanding that it can be denied.

Rene

Michael

As far as negotiating, I agree but in the Silicon Valley, it's not that uncommon for people to take unpaid leave. In my group, a Indian guy took 6 weeks off to go back to India to get married just before we were trying to meet a deadline (really dumb of him to schedule his marriage during the critical times in the schedule). However that was fortunate since he was way behind schedule and his code was causing a lot of problems with our project but as soon as he left, I took his code and fixed and enhanced it so it was working perfectly within a few days. While he was there, it's difficult to take over someone else's code since that creates tension.

One of my bosses took one year off to care for her sick mother. The company would take her back after the year but her old position probably wouldn't be available when she returned and she'd have to find a new position within the company.

Hotscot

It's not really. And the Bay Area/Silicon Valley/Large Corporations tend to skew the data.

Can't remember what your skillset is? Are you likely to move here and work for one of the above?

MidAtlantic

If you are thinking of coming and working in the USA then you need to adjust your thinking to life here. Generally time-off here is substantially less than in the UK. That's life! If you don't like it then think carefully about why you want to come. In my opinion, one thing is for sure, if you start talking at interviews about unpaid time off your chances of getting the job are reduced to about zero.

Relobotomy

Feeling lucky reading this, with 23 days plus a 20 day additional bonus break every 5 years service (next year hurrah).

Ricky_85

But if an employee gets 3 weeks that's quite acceptable. The only real issue is not having sick days. Or staying home sick, but using his 3 weeks "package" of PTO.

It's odd that, with the increase of the welfare state in America since 2008, liberals have thought about everything but this small, economical feasible, common-sense reform such as paid sick days and possible an increase of PTO or (un)PTO has been neglected...