I've recently received a job offer for a professional, mid to high level position, that offers a nice compensation; but....

23 Comments

1. Joan Williams, Senior Talent Acquisition SpecialistApril 17,2023 at 3:06AM UTC

   PTO is not typically mentioned in offer letters - at least not in any of the companies I've worked for in 20 plus years of recruiting.

   What is usually included in offer letters is information specific to that particular candidate. Compensation, bonus, start date, who they will be reporting to, etc.

   Things like PTO are company policy and therefore the same for everyone.

   The company should have some sort of Benefits Package information they can send you - usually a PDF document. That info may also be available on their website. PTO typically consists of a combination of vacation and sick time - most companies don't split them out anymore. The number of holidays can change every year but should also be included in the Benefits PDF.

2. AnonymousApril 17,2023 at 4:11AM UTC

   I've never seen combined PTO and holidays.

   I've always received a breakdown of salary, signing bonus, annual % bonus target, pto, sick and other perks.

   What I also receive us a link to holiday schedule and benefits options including 401k details.

   All of these things need to be spelled out fir you to truly vet the offer.

3. AnonymousApril 17,2023 at 12:35PM UTC

   I work for a non-profit that still does this. It was not uncommon in some hospitals in the past. If you can negotiate for more PTO now it will be worth it.

4. AnonymousApril 18,2023 at 12:27PM UTC

   I worked for a company for many years and for whatever reason the holidays were not included in the PTO. It was a separate document and had to be sent but sometimes it wasn’t automatically sent by HR unless someone asked for it weird but I have seen it before.

5. AnonymousApril 18,2023 at 6:51PM UTC

   Depends on the general field/industry - some roles/industries that work more of a 365-day schedule as a general rule, even if specific positions or locations are exempt from their scheduling, may just have a set number of days because holidays are still operational days with regard to needing personnel coverage. Also some orgs with a global presence may not utilize a "holiday" structure and just offer comparable PTO because not all locations will recognize the same set of holidays. Just a thought.

6. Sarah BilottiApril 19,2023 at 12:29PM UTC

   I worked for a healthcare organization that did just that- our holiday pay was pulled from our PTO. Having said that, our PTO accrual percentage was much higher than the national standard to compensate for this practice.

7. AnonymousApril 19,2023 at 12:31PM UTC

   This occurs in industries that are operate 365 days a year such as the airline industry. I took a role in corporate and only had Thanksgiving, Christmas Day and New Year's Day; if I wanted to take off on July 4th I needed to use PTO.

8. Valerie RiegerApril 19,2023 at 12:33PM UTC

   PTO programs were initially designed to include all paid time off - vacation, sick, and holiday. The accrual rate is typically higher than a traditional vacation/sick plan to accommodate those extra days.

9. Julie EApril 19,2023 at 4:55PM UTC

   Not where I work. PTO is separate from holidays and floating holidays.

10. AnonymousApril 19,2023 at 12:39PM UTC

    Did you ask about paid holidays? I mean, paid holidays aren't always laid out in the offer letter or included in info provided with an offer unless the candidate requests.

11. AnonymousApril 19,2023 at 12:57PM UTC

    I work in health care and my PTO includes vacation, sick, and holidays. We do not receive paid holidays and must use our PTO if we take that day off.

12. AnonymousApril 19,2023 at 1:22PM UTC

    Ask before you take the offer

13. GirlBossanova824746April 19,2023 at 1:26PM UTC

    I have worked a job before that gave a generous PTO amount. My first day I was handed a pre typed pto request for all holidays for the year. There are companies that do this.

14. Emily PhelanApril 19,2023 at 1:26PM UTC

    I have never seen that in all of my years in corporate America. I would ask to see their benefits package. That should clearly lay out the benefits available, including the holiday schedule.

15. E CApril 19,2023 at 3:20PM UTC

    I briefly worked for a company who did something similar. The "big" holidays were paid, I believe Christmas, Thanksgiving, Labor Day, and Memorial Day. Everything else was an expected work day. There was no *need* for us to work some of them, like the day after Thanksgiving. Our clients didn't work that day and their customers didn't appreciate our calls. That was one of many signs that this was a "profit over people" company. If you have other options, I would consider them seriously.

16. AnonymousApril 19,2023 at 3:21PM UTC

    PTO is usually listed in offer letters. Company holidays are usually not, but I would ask to be sure. This is different if you’re doing a job that doesn’t take holidays like nurses, service staff (hotels, restaurants, etc.).

17. MandyApril 19,2023 at 4:27PM UTC

    Yikes. Maybe you can negotiate 10 extra days of PTO for holidays?

18. AnonymousApril 19,2023 at 5:05PM UTC

    I have definitely seen this in Healthcare. PTO is all time off, Vacation, Sick, and Holidays. I'm sure it's more common in industries that have 365 work days, like hospitals, airlines, etc..

19. AnonymousApril 19,2023 at 6:17PM UTC

    If you are in the US that is not acceptable as there are federal holidays that you are entitled to. Definitely ask, and perhaps if they have an employee handbook you could ask if the holiday dates are listed therein.

20. AnonymousApril 24,2023 at 3:28AM UTC

    I would suggest that in the US, a federal holiday is a day that US government employees have a day off. I have worked for several companies that didn't give federal holidays, such as MLK and President's Day as paid holidays. US workers are protected and entitled to time off work.

21. surfnwriteApril 19,2023 at 6:53PM UTC

    I worked in a job that was "open" 365 days a year. A certain number of employees would need to work on each holiday, and those who did received a "comp" day for having worked the holiday, i.e., they were then owed a day off for having done so.

22. AnonymousApril 20,2023 at 4:20AM UTC

    I have worked jobs in two completely different industries. One only granted 10 days of a PTO a year, no holidays off (unless we didn't have enough production to merit working a holiday). That was it. Nothing else. However, if you got sick and needed extensive time off work, as long as you were out consecutive days (e.g. 5 days) and had a doctor's note, it would only count as one day of PTO (instead of 5).

    In a separate job, PTO was based off hours worked. No designated holidays off (or designated sick or vacation time), but, depending on client needs, I might end up getting holidays off anyway, but I always had to check. PTO in that system could earn up to a maximum and be used however you want, so in a positive way, I didn't have to bother with a doctor's note, per say. Also, I could choose whether or not to use it for a day I was taking off (this would not work at my first, aforementioned job, though).

    If this really concerns you, and could be a deal breaker for you (or you just want to know what to expect and not be surprised), you could certainly look in your employee handbook (if they've given you one) or ask the hiring contacts on how PTO and holidays work (though HR should fully understand it and be able to explain, but since you're in the hiring process, they might filter everything through the hiring contacts instead).

    To answer your question, it's definitely not weird to only have PTO and no holidays off, though I imagine each place that offers PTO really varies in presentation.

23. Annetta MosesApril 24,2023 at 3:31AM UTC

    I would definitely ask if there is time off for the company, state, or federal holidays. In the hospitality, retail, and healthcare industries where the business operates 365 days a year, I have seen companies only offer vacation and zero holidays.

    Congrats on receiving a job offer.