Work and family life

Paid time off, planned time off, or personal time off (PTO), is a policy in some employee handbooks that provides a bank of hours in which the employer pools sick days, vacation days, and personal days that allows employees to use as the need or desire arises. This policy pertains mainly to the United States, where there are no federal legal requirements for a minimum number of paid vacation days (see also the list of statutory minimum employment leave by country). Instead, U.S. companies determine the amount of paid time off that will be allotted to employees, while keeping in mind the payoff in recruiting and retaining employees.
Generally, PTO hours cover everything from planned vacations to sick days, and are becoming more prevalent in the field of human resource management. Unlike more traditional leave plans, PTO plans don't distinguish employee absences from personal days, vacation days, or sick days. Upon employment, the company determines how many PTO hours will be allotted per year and a "rollover" policy. Some companies let PTO hours accumulate for only a year, and unused hours disappear at year-end.^[1] Some PTO plans may also accommodate unexpected or unforeseeable circumstances such as jury duty, military duty, and bereavement leave.^[2] PTO bank plans typically do not include short-term or long-term disability leave, workers compensation, family and medical leave, sabbatical, or community service leave.^[3]
It is unclear as to when PTO bank-type plans were first being utilized in the workforce. In a 2010 study conducted by WorldatWork, 44% of 387 companies surveyed said they started using PTO bank-type plans prior to year 2000.^[4]
Since 2020, usage of PTO has declined. Unused PTO increased from 27% to 55% in that time period according to a research study conducted by Sorbet. Companies such as Dóndefocus on providing a vacation savings and recognition platform to employers who are seeking to improve PTO utilization, reduce burnout, and retain their employees.
Annual leave is a period of paid time off work granted by employers to employees to be used for whatever the employee wishes. Depending on the employer's policies, differing number of days may be offered, and the employee may be required to give a certain amount of advance notice, may have to coordinate with the employer to be sure that staffing is available during the employee's absence, and other requirements may have to be met.^[1] The vast majority of countries today mandate a minimum amount of paid annual leave by law.^[2]
Among the larger countries, China requires at least five days' paid annual leave and India requires two days of paid leave for every month worked. The United States mandates no minimum paid leave, treating it as a perk rather than a right.^[3]
Most countries have labour laws that mandate employers give a certain number of paid time-off days per year to workers.
Canada requires at least two weeks, which increases to three weeks for employees that have worked for a certain number of years (In Saskatchewan this entitlement starts out at three weeks and increases to four weeks).^[12] An additional fourth week is provided to federally regulated workers after working for a further number of years.^[13]
In the European Union the countries can set freely the minimum, but it has to be at least equivalent to 4 working weeks.^[14] In the Netherlands this is achieved by mandating at minimum 4 times the number of contracted hours in a person's working week; e.g. if


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