Re:Microsoft Transitions U.S. FTEs to “Discretionary Time Off”
by notJim on Wednesday January 11, 2023 @02:03PM
(#34342897)
> As a manager I’d also hate this - it’s another thing that I would have to keep track of and weigh. I don’t want to have to discuss with people about how much PTO is okay! That’s something somebody else should decide!
It's so easy though, just default to yes. Is there a critical deadline coming up? Are they productive and focused at work? Then just always approve.
Re:Microsoft Transitions U.S. FTEs to “Discretionary Time Off”
by akamia on Wednesday January 11, 2023 @02:22PM
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That's the approach I've taken and it has worked out really well. As long as they're getting their work done, I'm not concerned with how much time they're taking off.
Re:Microsoft Transitions U.S. FTEs to “Discretionary Time Off”
by badpun on Wednesday January 11, 2023 @03:55PM
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How about 8 weeks per year? Or 10 weeks? Would that be fine?
Re:Microsoft Transitions U.S. FTEs to “Discretionary Time Off”
by itronitron on Wednesday January 11, 2023 @06:08PM
(#34346416)
Absolutely, and as a result the manager gets glowing reviews and can also justify an increase in headcount which will improve their status in the organization.
Re:Microsoft Transitions U.S. FTEs to “Discretionary Time Off”
by noisenotsignal on Wednesday January 11, 2023 @07:55PM
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I think your implication that there is some unspoken upper limit is valid, but as long as said upper limit is more than what you would have gotten for vacation days (8 weeks, or 40 days, seems way beyond the normal amount. Microsoft started at 15 days.), there seems little reason to complain. I don’t think you would find anyone willing to allow 364 (modulo weekends) days off each year even for the best employee, so of course it’s not truly unlimited.
Re:Microsoft Transitions U.S. FTEs to “Discretionary Time Off”
by prirun on Wednesday January 11, 2023 @03:13PM
(#34343958)
If the corporation shoves enough "critical work" down your throat, a manager will not be able to say yes. So the corporation is in control of the amount of time off by setting unrealistic deadlines / workloads.
Re:Microsoft Transitions U.S. FTEs to “Discretionary Time Off”
by mrguyorama on Wednesday January 11, 2023 @04:46PM
(#34345392)
No, if you are a manager it is your job to keep your employees productive, happy, and fruitful by approving and encouraging ample rest time and pushing a message up the chain that you don't have enough staff to meet expectations.
Re:Microsoft Transitions U.S. FTEs to “Discretionary Time Off”
by notJim on Wednesday January 11, 2023 @07:31PM
(#34347307)
That's for sure true. "Unlimited" vacation only works if the company has a good WLB in general. At a company like you're describing, having defined PTO days doesn't always help that much either.
As a manager I’d also hate this - it’s another thing that I would have to keep track of and weigh. I don’t want to have to discuss with people about how much PTO is okay! That’s something somebody else should decide!
If a company really wants to give people flexibility they would give X days of paid vacation plus as much unpaid as your manager will approve. Best of both worlds IMO.
Addendum: The company I work for has a “once in a lifetime opportunity” policy where if you want to do something special, like climb Everest or take a cruise around the world or whatever, they’ll work with you to figure out how to make leave work for it. It’s not actually once in a lifetime either, the policy says once every five years or so. I like that idea a lot, even if I’ve never used it.