Walt Disney World reaches agreement with unions on back-to-work plan

A manager in my office had 35 years perfect attendance. She came in no matter what, even through pregnancies when she was younger, and often when she probably shouldn’t have.
There was a guy who started around the time I did who was working on 30 years perfect attendance. It was a compulsion for him (it wasn’t the only one he had, either) and many times I’d look at him and say “what’s that getting you there, Chris? They won’t treat you any different.” Then sure enough one day he fell and broke his arm badly and had to be off. About 3 months later he suffered a mild heart attack and had to be off again, and guess what? The company placed him on a step of warning for calling off with a high rate of frequency. Sad thing was it really hurt his feelings, but they weren’t about to cut him a break on account of all those years of dutiful service.

Then again we knew the people that would take every day they were allowed the minute it came available to them. Those were the people that had funny looks on their faces when a real emergency arose and they hadn’t banked any time to allow for such a thing.

^You definitely have both ends of the spectrum there. There is a right and wrong way to manage your PTO and I certainly work with a few people who take every minute they can. I always use my 6 free days and hardly every touch my actual sick bank but I know a few people who won't even use the free days. A coworker of mine just hit 5 years perfect attendance this year and aside from being a goal of hers, it isn't anything the company cares about just as the example above explains. I don't think I could ever work the perfect job that still wouldn't require a few mental health days each year.

a "few mental health days each year" ??

I'm sure you use more than "a few", if not. You should ;)

I won't even take a job with less than four weeks paid vacation, and I definitely won't work for a company that exercises a command and control structure. You've gotta treat people like adults, even in hourly employment.

^ I don't work for a command and control type of employer but yet somehow the employees basically act as if they do and put themselves into their own mess. I don't get it. The company doesn't care how much time we take or when we take it but I am constantly hearing "I can't call in even though I am sick" or "I can't take a vacation, we are busy that month".

Red Garter Rob said:

a "few mental health days each year" ??

I'm sure you use more than "a few", if not. You should ;)

I mean I definitely take no less than 6 a year but I have gotten smart and now schedule vacations within a few days of completing major projects. Nothing like the feeling of spending months working on something, finally opening it up and then saying "I'm out!" and enjoying drinks on a cruise ship while everyone else is still at work :)

My national organization (Presbyterian Church USA) mandates 4 weeks vacation and 2 weeks study/education leave. In the past we've (my wife and I split a single position) considered asking for more leave in place of raises, but we've never pulled the trigger. I cannot imagine doing what I do with any less but theoretically our organization's mission is to value people beyond their earning potential, so there's that.

My brother in law owns a small software company in Central PA. He mandates a month long sabbatical for every employee every year. I don't exactly know the details, but that's always intrigued me.

Untenured faculty at U-M engineering meet with their Department Chairs annually for feedback. This usually happens in May. Maybe my third year, my Chair as an ice breaker asked me what I had planned for vacation that summer. I thought the right answer was: "I don't take vacations."

He didn't exactly get angry with me, but he was very clear that that answer was not acceptable. I will never forget that moment, and I am extraordinarily lucky to have had that advice when I had it. Later that summer we took our toddler and pre-schooler to Cedar Point for a long weekend, and it started us on an almost two-decade run (they are now 21 and 19, respectively). Vacation was an important part in our lives--as it happens one of the few ways I was fully available to them--and I am glad we made it such a priority. It was hard to convince myself to do it, but I wouldn't trade any of it for anything.

Universal Orlando will present their reopening plans tomorrow

My much younger sister has lived in France for the past 17 years. Doctors there can order a mental health vacation and your employer has no say in the matter, they must comply.

US would have lines out the door (6 feet apart of course) at doctors who are known to pass those orders out like candy on Halloween.

Pre-kid, I used to pride myself on building up this huge bank of PTO. Well over 300 hours and that's even after selling back 40 per year. At some point, I wised up and realized it didn't make any sense to keep all that much more than the 180 hours that they would pay me if I left. It also wasn't doing my mental health any good to not take time off. I hover between 150 and 200 hours most of the time. Thanks to a ton of days at home during the last 2 months, I'm back over 200 hours for the first time in over a year.