Poll of the Day > Settle a debate between my wife and I.

(+) Yeah! (+)

Short Story: People put in for vacation time at work. The vacation time is accepted. Then suddenly the office closes one of the days due to inclement weather, or perhaps a surprise day off near a holiday.

A. The employees who put in their days get the vacation day returned to them as the office was closed anyway.

B. The employees who put in their days do not get a refund on the vacation day since they were going to be off anyway.

B

CTLM posted...

B

Then why didnt you vote B?

User728 posted...

Then why didnt you vote B?

I haven't voted yet.

Edit: just did. It's tied 2-2

Assuming this is "which do you think should be the case", and not "which would be the case", I voted A

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Johnny Eagle posted...

Assuming this is "which do you think should be the case", and not "which would be the case", I voted A

Yes, its which should be the case. I already know what a company will actually do.

The phrasing of the question muddied the waters a bit, because I would lean in a different direction in each of your examples.
If a workday that someone booked off became a non workday because of weather, a power outage, etc., then I would lean B.
If there was a surprise day off near a holiday, and nobody was ever going to be expected to work it, then it would be bizarre to require a vacation day to be away for that, and I would lean A.

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A is how it should be, but B is how it usually is 99.44% of the time.
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Companies always do B. Though, I would like A. But it usually doesnt happen that way...
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B, usually because "bad weather" just means "work from home", it is not a day off. I have never heard of a "surprise day off" before.

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B sounds more logical. Vacation time you get paid for. Closings due to inclement weather in which case you don't work, you don't get paid, but nor is your absence counted against you. In the B situation, the day you're on vacation for and the office closes, you're getting paid for, while those not on vacation aren't, so it's not like you're getting nothing out of it.

It would be nice if you could retroactively delete that day's vacation request and have it go back to your time pool, but it would also need to cancel the money you would have gotten that day.

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B if the office is closed for an unexpected reason (the company is not giving you a day off, they just have nothing for you to do)

A if the company decided to make some random day a day off (the company is giving you a day off, which has value, and you haven't received that value unless your vac. day is refunded)

pretty sure this is not just how it should be, but how it is, at least where I work. vacation days and official days off actually have monetary value and can't just be ignored.

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B. Someone else had to be scheduled to cover, so the person covering gets a free day off, but it's still a vacation day for the person originally taking time off.

BTW: Settle a debate between I and my wife? Wrong! Settle a debate between my wife and me.

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It all depends on if the office/company is paying the day that was closed for weather or not.
If everyone who was going to show is not getting paid, but the vacation day is still paid for, no refund.

Other way around, sure refunding the day would be fine, but youd have to talk with the HR and work something out, it shouldnt be automatically

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A

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Zangulus posted...

However a lot of companies would force the employee to use the day off regardless because it was already accepted. But companies dont care about their employees health and wellness.

Ogurisama posted...

Other way around, sure refunding the day would be fine, but youd have to talk with the HR and work something out, it shouldnt be automatically

if this is a day off that the company is giving employees, then it would *have* to be automatically refunded, or else you wouldn't have received the value to which you're entitled. (right?)

if the office is closed for unforseen reasons, that's different because the company is not giving anyone a "day off", there's just no work available.

(HR will have a vacation day tally, and accounting will have a vacation pay accumulation. they can't just reduce these values willy-nilly.)

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Damn you guys must work for shitty companies. Mine would definitely give me the day back

Im a union man. A or management would be fired

edit: we always have to work inclement weather. In the case you presented the worker would actually choose what they want to happen

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This question doesn't make sense.

Was out of work a couple days because of a hurricane and then out once because of a freak snow storm that dumped over 3 feet of snow in 12 hours.

At no point in time did we get paid for that.

Why would vacation time be refunded? The premise of this question just confuses the fuck out of me.

Let's assume nobody was paid the day the office closed.
The person who requested the time off should be able to talk to a manager to decide whether to take the day unpaid the same as the rest of the workers, or to get paid for the closure and use a vacation day as planned.
In that case A and B would be wrong.

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Is the vacation paid? If so, no refund. Unpaid? I might be more inclined to be on the side of giving the time back. Ultimately, I think it should be up to the employer.

B. The reason for the closure was unusual and unforeseen

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If the unforeseen closed day is a paid day off for everyone then the vacation time using employee should get that vacation day back.

If it is not a paid day off, then the employee should have the option to still use the paid vacation day or take the day off unpaid like their colleagues and have the vacation day returned.

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Clarification: The other employees got paid on the snowstorm day...basically it was a paid day off and they did not forfeit a vacation day that they accrued.

B. Had the place not been shut they would have had it off anyway.Not sure what happens with other people would make any difference to you outside of "I made the wrong choice".

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wwinterj25 posted...

Not sure what happens with other people would make any difference to you outside of "I made the wrong choice".

It's not a wrong choice when a person and the entire company had no clue that something would occur that day that would force a closure.

The only wrong choice would be how the company handled the vacation day. B is the wrong choice since the company would be rewarding those that would have worked with a paid day off and punishing those people who made plans months before.

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SunWuKung420 posted...

It's not a wrong choice when a person and the entire company had no clue that something would occur that day that would force a closure.

Then it's the luck of the draw. Whatever the case you lose.

SunWuKung420 posted...

punishing those people who made plans months before.

Yet you're still getting your paid day off as planned.

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User728 posted...

The other employees got paid on the snowstorm day...basically it was a paid day off

no, not "basically". if it was a "snowstorm day", so no one could work but still got paid, that's not officially a day off. that's a work day that no one was able to work. no one is *entitled* to have that day off, they just were not able to perform any work that day.

(I am assuming salaried employees though; hourly employees would not get paid on a snow day anyway, so that must be what you're talking about.)

where I work, we can have both of these kind of days off:

• day off because we're physically unable to work due to unforseen causes
• paid days off as a job perk

the second one would require a vac. day refund and the first would not

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Sahuagin posted...

B if the office is closed for an unexpected reason (the company is not giving you a day off, they just have nothing for you to do)

A if the company decided to make some random day a day off (the company is giving you a day off, which has value, and you haven't received that value unless your vac. day is refunded)

pretty sure this is not just how it should be, but how it is, at least where I work. vacation days and official days off actually have monetary value and can't just be ignored.

This is where I lean as well, and exactly how my office works.

Sure, it's unfortunate that your vacation day happened to align with the snow day, but you were under no obligation to try and make it to work prior to being told not to bother. You don't have to worry about getting a phone call at noon saying that the weather is clear - please come to work. You may not even be in the city or country. Just accept that it's still a vacation day as everything was easier for you - just treat it how you normally would.

Option B though? They are just giving the day off, presumably with some notice. That should just apply universally. Everyone is told ahead of time they'll get it off and can make their own plans accordingly.

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SunWuKung420 posted...

B is the wrong choice since the company would be rewarding those that would have worked with a paid day off and punishing those people who made plans months before

I don't believe "punishing" is the right word here. They aren't being punished. Nothing is being taken away from them. They made their plans, they still get the time off to enact the plans. Nothing has changed for them in the slightest.

Everyone else got a bonus, they got things as they were agreed to. Does it feel good? Not necessarily, but it's certainly not a punishment.

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In case you guys want to see what B8 felt about this:

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/boards/8-gamefaqs-contests/78271673?jumpto=26#26

Dikitain posted...

B, usually because "bad weather" just means "work from home", it is not a day off. I have never heard of a "surprise day off" before.

The company I worked for one time quite literally pulled off this.
Their solution was simply that they "refunded" the hours off, regardless of whether or not you are able to adjust it.

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But bad weather refunded? I'm not sure about that but I'd support it for the simple fact of fairness.

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Zangulus posted...

My job pays us if they decide not to open because of inclement weather or other events.

Are you salaried?

I work an hourly job. So if I am off, i don't get paid. If I am on Vacation, I do.

If I am off on schedule and decide I need more money, I can put in a vacation day to get paid.

If I am on Vacation and the something happens that would have made me off.... if I haven't left for Vacation I can ask for it back... but it usually depends on your Supervisor or Employer.

If I was already on the Vacation day itself then my lost but I probably wouldn't have known anyway.

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At my previous company, if a holiday were coming up, you had to work the day before and after the holiday to get paid for it (the Friday before if the holiday were on Monday). Apparently, a lot of people used one vacation day either before or after the holiday to extend the break length, and someone higher up was annoyed with it.

Anywho, like everyone else, I think A, but usually it's B.

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Depends on whether the employee wanted to be paid (vacation) or not (building closed - no ones paid)

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B, as A would cost the company more money, if employee is salary. My employer always goes the cheap route and always took B approach when this situation occurred. This happened 3 times in the 5 years I have worked at my current job.

I know the military does B. Technically, you can get some days back if you have a cool Supervisor. But they would have to be at the beginning or end of leave. But they aren't really suppose to do that...
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Zangulus posted...

No. And it covers everyone scheduled for that day regardless of status.

Weird, never heard of a place that would do that.

BlackScythe0 posted...

Weird, never heard of a place that would do that.

I think my job did that once. Because we were scheduled to come in, but the ice got really bad. So, they sent everyone there home, and told the rest not to come in. But I think we still got paid... I think...
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A is what it should be, and if you so much as suspect it might be B but haven't had the chance to find out yet, then wait until the last possible fucking second to send in your vacation request to make sure the weather looks clear for the time you'll be out. If it doesn't look for sure clear, do each request by the day and say you're sick (if it's specifically vacation time and not sick time, it shouldn't fucking matter what you choose to use it for, it's literally just time off).
If they figure out what you're doing, tell them why you're doing it. They made this mess. By fucking over the people who tried to be considerate and give forewarning about their plans.

streamofthesky posted...

A is what it should be, and if you so much as suspect it might be B but haven't had the chance to find out yet, then wait until the last possible fucking second to send in your vacation request to make sure the weather looks clear for the time you'll be out. If it doesn't look for sure clear, do each request by the day and say you're sick (if it's specifically vacation time and not sick time, it shouldn't fucking matter what you choose to use it for, it's literally just time off).
If they figure out what you're doing, tell them why you're doing it. They made this mess. By fucking over the people who tried to be considerate and give forewarning about their plans.

No offense, but that sounds like shitty advice. Most companies, including the military and every job Ive ever had, does a first come first serve basis. Meaning waiting to the last day is not going to work for many people. Nor is taking one day at a time the day before. Most companies will just not approve it because its ridiculous. And when they find out, theyll just say no to your leave request. And then theyll make a new rule that fucks you and everyone else over you one person decided to try to take advantage of the company...
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streamofthesky posted...

A is what it should be, and if you so much as suspect it might be B but haven't had the chance to find out yet, then wait until the last possible fucking second to send in your vacation request to make sure the weather looks clear for the time you'll be out. If it doesn't look for sure clear, do each request by the day and say you're sick (if it's specifically vacation time and not sick time, it shouldn't fucking matter what you choose to use it for, it's literally just time off).
If they figure out what you're doing, tell them why you're doing it. They made this mess. By fucking over the people who tried to be considerate and give forewarning about their plans.

What are you even talking about. Vacations need to be put in 3+ weeks in advance at a minimum at every job I've held.

Barring a medical emergency what you're suggesting sounds like a write up.

B, as mildly annoying as that might be.

I remember one particular day at my work.....I had this little "get out of work free" card thingie. One free day I could pick to just not need to come in.

My supervisor at the time was a lazy asshole and didn't want to go through the hassle of looking ahead on the schedule and plan the day next week I could take off. It was still like 8am, so he said, "You can use it today. Just go home now."

I was like, "But I already drove to work. I'm here now."

He got kinda pissy, and said that I can take it off now or never.

So I just went home. It was kinda bullshit, because the point of the "get out of work free" card was that you literally wouldn't have to come in. It was a 100% DAY off.

So I went back home and enjoyed my time. Then at like 11am a coworker texted me asking if I wanted to go out. I texted back, "I thought you guys had work today?"

And he was like, "Oh, we got out early today."

I. Was. Fucking. Pissed.

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I prefer B of course, but I have a government job and A is the way it goes.

retro_9980 posted...

I prefer B of course, but I have a government job and A is the way it goes.

Did you switch those around?
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