Employee realizes that they have taken less PTO since the company instituted "unlimited" policy due to the implied threat from HR: 'It's just this weird psychological thing where you feel like youre being watched or judged'

After switching to unlimited PTO, this employee realized they took significantly fewer vacation days than when they had a defined 15-day cap, exposing the subtle pressure and ambiguity baked into the policy.

If you have a set number of PTO days, sitting in a visible balance that is going to expire at the end of the year, you almost feel a quiet pressure, an urgency to use those hours. Literally as if some clock is ticking down for the entire year, right up until that point on the 31st of December, when you know you should have taken it. If you've ever let leave expire or gotten to the point where HR is literally forcing you to take it, you have this in your head for the rest of your working days.

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  • A male employee with glasses sits in a striped hammock, focusing on his laptop screen despite being outdoors near a green tent and lake.
    via Getty Images

    An employee balances work and leisure while camping, reflecting the reality of modern PTO policies.

  • My company switched to "unlimited PTO" two years ago and i realized i took less vacation than when we had the 15 day cap

    did the math last week cause i was trying to figure out how much time off i have left and then remembered...
    via AffectionateMud9193

  • This classic way of accruing PTO instills this sort of culture where it's not your fault that you're using your leave; it has to be used. No one, not your boss and not HR, can fault you for taking it, because they understand the necessity of it.

    On the other hand, there's something about having something indefinitely that, no pressure, no ticking clock, is just there floating ephermerally as a theoretical leave balance, it doesn't have to be used, there's no ticking time on it's expire, it's just there. Sure, you might use it someday. Unlimited PTO sounds great, after all!

    But there's more to it than that. That understanding from your boss, that requirement that the PTO be taken, is gone. HR is no longer tracking PTO as an overhead balance, a liability that needs to be constantly reduced, but rather the liability of the employees who are now wasting company money by taking time off. And the fact that the “unlimited” PTO is being regarded in this way means it's not really unlimited at all. After all, to take time off, you need to be able to step away from your job culturally and psychologically. Most companies that switch to unlimited PTO do so alongside stricter policies about taking time off and pushing cultures that “encourage” workers to be dedicated to their roles… or else.

    While the policy looks progressive on paper, the reality is much different. Pay out your PTO? What PTO, you mean that "unlimited" PTO that you never used that somehow simultaneously never existed in the first place? This makes unlimited PTO essentially “Schrodinger's PTO”; you can't be sure of its state, as it is dependent on a variable you can't control or observe in the first place. 

  • i dont have a number anymore. unlimited PTO baby. pulled up my old calendar and in 2022 when we still had the standard 15 days i used like 13 of them.
    via AffectionateMud9193
  • last year with "unlimited" i took 8. EIGHT. and the thing is nobody tells you no.
    via AffectionateMud9193
  • its not like managers are blocking requests. its just this weird psychological thing. where you feel like youre being watched or judged if you take too much.
    via AffectionateMud9193
  • like whats too much? nobody knows. thats the whole point. the ambiguity is the trap. a coworker of mine actually asked HR what the average employee takes per year so she could have a reference point and they straight up refused to tell her.
    via AffectionateMud9193
  • said it "varies by team". cool thanks i only realized any of this because i finally had some money saved up and was planning a longer trip to portugal, like 12 days, and i caught myself feeling guilty about it before i even submitted the request.
    via AffectionateMud9193
  • guilty for using a benefit that is supposedly unlimited. the policy sounds generous on paper and thats exactly why they switched to it.
    via AffectionateMud9193
  • no payout when you leave, no liability on the books, and employees mysteriously self police themselves into taking less time off.
    via AffectionateMud9193
  • its actually genius if you hate workers
    via AffectionateMud9193
  • A male employee wearing a plaid shirt and glasses sits in a camping chair by a calm lake, working on his laptop instead of relaxing.
    via Getty Images

    An employee working remotely by a lake, illustrating the difficulty of taking true PTO.

    The image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • UndoxxableOhioan So it's working as intended. Unlimited PTO has always been a scam.
    via AffectionateMud9193
  • Hyasfuq My guess is they will say nothing until you start getting closer to the 15 days of PTO you used to have. At that point they will start "mentioning" it and discouraging you from taking any other days off.
    via AffectionateMud9193
  • No-Bit-2913 You just need to be confident in yourself, and not worry about how you look. If you co cerned about how you look.. then you fall into their trap. Imo, whatever amount of weeks you used to get before, add 1 more week to that total for your unlimited PTO.
    via AffectionateMud9193
  • omgseriouslynoway It's your manager's job to approve it. Feel free to request whatever you want. It's up to them to decide what staff are needed at any given. time. I took over 50 days one year because my manager just approves everything I ask for... his manager gave me a gentle wrist slap (metaphorically) for that one lol.
    via AffectionateMud9193
  • illstillglow Oh god, if I got unlimited PTO my coworkers would never see me again lol.
    via AffectionateMud9193
  • Sir_ThuggleS Mine has unlimited PTO as well. The way I ensure I use it is by taking most Fridays off.
    via AffectionateMud9193
  • homelabWannabie My company went Unlimited PTO. I said bet. First year I looked at what my boss put in and copied. 25 days. Each year there after I keep adding days... I'm up to 34 days. I'm going to keep going until they tell me I'm taking too many days - off then I've found the maximum of "unlimited" lol
    via AffectionateMud9193
  • SailingSpark Unlimited is such a scam. I get six weeks a year and use every single one of those hours.
    via AffectionateMud9193
  • concretism Go to Portugal. Now that you know you are working against yourself, schedule out your breaks even if they are at home. Don't wait until you have supposed sufficient funds for a specific trip.
    via AffectionateMud9193
  • Shahkcawptah I have unlimited PTO and aim to take at least 25 days a year (5 work weeks). Some longer vacations, some long weekends, some just random days here and there. I've never had an issue before, but will admit I am lucky to have a manager who encourages us to take time off, because that isn't always the case. I think the main reason companies do this is so they don't have to pay out PTO if you leave or they let you go. There is probably the element you discuss about feeling guilty for so
    via AffectionateMud9193

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