An employee pinches the bridge of his nose while taking a phone call at his desk, with colleagues sitting in the background. Not actual story subjects.
Management at a logistics company told employees at the start of the year that it would be mandatory for all of them to take a minimum of 15 PTO days per year to prevent burnout. They were going to evaluate managers based on how much PTO those who worked under them were taking.
Despite these intentions, one employee found that every single time they requested a couple of days of vacation, they got denied. Their manager complained that they weren't taking enough days off, leaving them wondering how they could get the system to accept their PTO and let them have a break.
A group of three colleagues sit and talk with one another in an open-plan office. Still frame for contextual reference only.
A or B: My company requires 15 PTO days a year for "burnout prevention." I requested 6 days this year. All 6 were denied. Am I wrong to escalate with the denial emails?
I'm an account coordinator at a midsize logistics company. Four years in. I handle eleven client accounts and back up three others.
In January, leadership rolled out a wellbeing program. The main requirement is that everyone take at least 15 PTO days a year. The CEO's email said, "Rest is not a reward. It's a requirement." HR tracks PTO usage on a dashboard, and managers are evaluated on their team's compliance.
Our PTO requests go through a system that checks staffing and coverage before approving or denying dates.
This year I requested six days. In February, two days to visit my sister. Denied for "minimum coverage threshold." In April, one day after a trade show. Denied for the same reason. I tried two days in June and one day in September for my anniversary. Both requests were denied too.
I checked the dashboard last week. My line reads "0 of 15 required rest days taken," with a flag next to my name. My manager's scorecard shows "team rest compliance: 0 percent." He told me, "You're killing me on this metric."
An employee rests his head on his chin while sitting at his desk, with coworkers in the background. Model portrayal.
I asked HR how I'm supposed to take 15 days when my requests keep getting denied. The rep said the system weighs staffing needs against requests automatically. When I asked who sets the coverage threshold, she said it changes based on staffing.
I also asked what happens at year end if I can't take the required days. She said the policy is "developmental, not punitive," but couldn't explain what the dashboard flag means for performance reviews.
I have six denial emails, all citing coverage issues.
A.Drop it and rebook around the system. The denials aren't personal, the company is understaffed, and being the person who forces a policy exception could cost more than the vacation days are worth.
B. The company requires 15 days, scores managers on it, and its own system denied every request I made. Six denials aren't a scheduling problem, they're a paper trail. Escalating with them isn't dramatic. It's the only thing that documents the company failing to follow its own program.
It seems nonsensical that an employer would place such a major emphasis on their employees needing to rest, and then make them request that in a way that left them constantly being denied. The fact that it was a compliance metric only added to the pressure and made something supposed to reduce stress a lot more stressful. It is a classic case of the mechanics of the workplace not being able to catch up with a change in the culture, and it is the employees that pay the price. What should be an improvement in their quality of life just becomes another thing to worry about.
Three coworkers smile as they sit together and discuss something. Picture does not depict real parties.
B forward/attach all 6 to your manager and put the effort on them for the solution
Put this on your manager in HR to resolve. You are doing your part by requesting the days in a timely manner. If they can accommodate the request, then they have to remove the mandate for taking the PTO, and I think you should also ask them: Is there an option for you to be paid out for unused pto
if you aren’t able to use the days due to their staffing.
B makes more sense. Just keep the tone professional and ask for an approval plan to use your required days rather than making it personal.
Definitely B. You are not asking for special treatment, you are asking how to meet a requirement they set, but keep it factual.
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