I apologize ahead of time if this is in the wrong spot. I did not really see where it would fit.
I'm currently working as an RN for one company, but go between two seperate assisted living facilities. In both facilties it is me and 1 other nurse. At one, ALF 1, the nurse I work with does her scheduling of home health aids. Recently we have had a lot of people quit and now have some people putting in PTO requests for their weekends. In our P&P for the company it says that no one is allowed to take PTO on their weekend to work, you have to find your own replacement, however the nurse at ALF 1 is granting all PTO requests because,
"According to labor laws, you cannot tell someone that they cannot take their earned PTO on a weekend. They earned it so they have the right to use it." Which I get to an extent.
At ALF 2, the nurse has one of our long time home health aids doing the schedule, but due to a few unfortunate events this week that put a real hinder on our schedule I had to help her with it. The HHA stated that someone tried taking PTO next weekend (she is having foot surgery Fri) she declined because it is her weekend to work. When I brought up the Labor Law, she didn't know what to think and neither do I!
I have looked everywhere trying to find this "Law" in writing that you cannot deny someone PTO no matter when they are trying to take it. Does anyone know if this is true or where I could find this information fast and easy? As my username indicates, I am in Iowa.
Why on earth would you ask this question on a nursing forum when you should be asking these questions from the people on staff at the Iowa state labor board? Thats where you will get an accurate answer. If you get an accurate answer on this forum, it will only be become someone else looked up the information for you.
Specializes in Critical Care, ED, Cath lab, CTPAC,Trauma.
The nurse that stated this is very experienced and up to date on rules and regulations at all times, but HR knew nothing about it. That's why I was trying to research! I think I will just leave it as follow our own P&P. Thanks Rose_Queen!
Each state has their own labor laws. These laws usually pertain only to hours worked, OT, the enforcement of overtime, mandated breaks. The rest of hours worked as they pertain to PTO and when/how to grant PTO is facility/policy driven. In my experience there are no "laws" that pertain to PTO/vacations.
Policies that pertain to PTO and when/how to schedule PTO are set by policy of the facility and there is usually fine print that states...up to the discretion of the manager and department needs.
You can call the Department of Labor or the EEOC of your state to be sure....they are usually very helpful.
What about FMLA (Family Medical Leave Act)? If her doctor agrees and does the paperwork, there's nothing an employer can do, as it is federal law. They can decline to grant it, which means she wouldn't be paid for it, BUT they could not fire her for taking the time. Besides, if she were to get MRSA in that foot, would it be worth it? It wouldn't to me but YMMV.
At my facility, you cannot take PTO time on your weekend to work. PTO is a benefit and is distributed per each facility's policy and procedure. That very experienced nurse is wrong.
Each state does have its own set of labor laws but I guarantee there is nothing said about when employees take PTO. If a state has any type of law regarding PTO it would be pertaining to whether or not accompany must pay accrued PTO when an employee quits as it is part of compensation.
Why on earth would you ask this question on a nursing forum when you should be asking these questions from the people on staff at the Iowa state labor board? That's where you will get an accurate answer. If you get an accurate answer on this forum, it will only be become someone else looked up the information for you.
If OP knew that, she would probably have done that.
PTO use is governed by the facilities policies, not law. Every company/facility that offers PTO has their own rules on how and when it can be used. That being said, as the scheduler at facility that is granting everybody's PTO has figured out upper management usually doesn't seem to care how PTO is actually granted or refused as long as the schedule stays filled with a minimum of overtime pay.
Some posters have suggested the staff member getting surgery on a Friday take FMLA which is a great idea if the facility is a big enough employer that FMLA applies. This is the general guideline of the applicable law :
"The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) provides certain employees with up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave per year. It also requires that their group health benefits be maintained during the leave.
FMLA is designed to help employees balance their work and family responsibilities by allowing them to take reasonable unpaid leave for certain family and medical reasons. It also seeks to accommodate the legitimate interests of employers and promote equal employment opportunity for men and women.
FMLA applies to all public agencies, all public and private elementary and secondary schools, and companies with 50 or more employees. These employers must provide an eligible employee with up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave each year for any of the following reasons:
for the birth and care of the newborn child of an employee;
for placement with the employee of a child for adoption or foster care;
to care for an immediate family member (spouse, child, or parent) with a serious health condition; or
to take medical leave when the employee is unable to work because of a serious health condition.
Employees are eligible for leave if they have worked for their employer at least 12 months, at least 1,250 hours over the past 12 months, and work at a location where the company employs 50 or more employees within 75 miles. Whether an employee has worked the minimum 1,250 hours of service is determined according to FLSA principles for determining compensable hours or work.
Time taken off work due to pregnancy complications can be counted against the 12 weeks of family and medical leave.
A final rule effective on January 16, 2009, updates the FMLA regulations to implement new military family leave entitlements enacted under the National Defense Authorization Act for FY 2008.
Special rules apply to employees of local education agencies. The Department of Labor administers FMLA; however, the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) administers FMLA for most federal employees."
If the employee hasn't worked enough qualified hours or the employer is smaller than 50 staff members FMLA won't be applicable.
Either way, I'd be inclined to honor the PTO request anyway as the employee obviously won't be at work the day following foot surgery. At least by granting the PTO you can have an alternate plan in place to staff the weekend instead of scrambling to cover the shifts last minute when she calls in, which she most likely will.
If OP knew that, she would probably have done that.
It does not seem like a great stretch to call your state labor board with questions about labor in your state. They are the only legitimate source of accurate information. This isn't hard and would have been figured out with a simple Google search, which the OP did not bother with, despite knowing how the internet works. It makes as much sense as my posting a question about what my state BON would do to me if I got a DUI. You pick up the phone and ask the BON, not strangers on the internet.
/username, BSN, RN
526 Posts
PTO isn't a required benefit. The employer can make any kinds of rules regarding it as they want.