Recently, I have been doing a lot of research relative to our Paid Time Off (PTO) policy, and I have found that many employees think that PTO is required and governed by the Department of Labor (DOL).  This reference article from the DOL website (below) helped me to clarify the issue. Did you know the FLSA only covers certain types of leave? 

There is a common misconception that Department of Labor regulates leave benefits through the Fair Labor Standards Act. But, the FLSA only covers certain types of leave. In fact, there are a number of employment practices which FLSA does not regulate. For example, it does not require:

• Vacation, holiday, severance, or sick pay
• Meal or rest periods, holidays off, or vacations
• Premium pay for weekend or holiday work
• Pay raises or fringe benefits
• Discharge notice, reason for discharge, or immediate payment of final wages to terminated employees.

 Here is a link to the DOL page for your reference. What issues are you facing on the topic of PTO?

Brooke Simcik, CDFA, is the Business Manager for VAI Architects Incorporated in Dallas, TX

She serves as the 2017-2018 SDA National Vice President.