I've been reading about this, but I would value an honest opinions from employees working on companies where this policy exist. Do you take more time than you would on another company? What the average feeling? As there a lot of abuse? Does it work as good as advertised?
Ask HN: How does unlimited vacation policy work in your company?
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Re: Ask HN: How does unlimited vacation policy work in your company?
#2I usually wait about a week before activating my unlimited vacation. This frees me up to look for my next job, which must also offer an unlimited vacation policy. I've been doing this for about thirteen months. I project my annual income this year will be around $1.7 million. So far, it has worked very well and I would recommend the arrangement to anyone.
Re: Ask HN: How does unlimited vacation policy work in your company?
#3I think taking 4-5weeks off spread out throughout the year is the best way to do it. If it is being abused your manager will speak to you about it. The best thing about unlimited vacation policy is that all your days off are PAID. Most companies will only give you 2weeks PTO. But imagine getting 4-5weeks off PTO. Thats how I see it.
It is as good as advertised if used correctly.
Re: Ask HN: How does unlimited vacation policy work in your company?
#4I think taking 4-5weeks off spread out throughout the year is the best way to do it. If it is being abused your manager will speak to you about it. The best thing about unlimited vacation policy is that all your days off are PAID. Most companies will only give you 2weeks PTO. But imagine getting 4-5weeks off PTO. Thats how I see it. It is as good as advertised if used correctly.
It is as good as advertised if used correctly.
They say the same thing about birth control. Yet, real world stats consistently differ markedly from "if used correctly" stats.
Re: Ask HN: How does unlimited vacation policy work in your company?
#5The only company I had offer this used it as a lever to pressure us to work more and longer. Then encouraged peer shaming if we took a day much less a week off. At that job I had two weeks off in two years.
To be a tiny bit fair, this was a tiny company with 3 engineers doing the whole lean startup thing.
I'd say the situation was valuable to learn from because it was apparent (in hindsight) from the first interview how bad the company culture was. So the lesson was if the company seems to be informal and unstructured, one person wearing five hats, Project Manager is also your designer or lead coder etc... (and I realize I just describe a huge number of startups. Use your best judgement).
tl;dr its more likely to be abused by the company than the employee
Re: Ask HN: How does unlimited vacation policy work in your company?
#6The catch is if you leave the company you do not get paid out for the vacation time you did not take.
Re: Ask HN: How does unlimited vacation policy work in your company?
#7I usually wait about a week before activating my unlimited vacation. This frees me up to look for my next job, which must also offer an unlimited vacation policy. I've been doing this for about thirteen months. I project my annual income this year will be around $1.7 million. So far, it has worked very well and I would recommend the arrangement to anyone.
Perhaps the most brilliant aspect of this scheme is that it will continue to sustain your legacy in perpetuity.
Your children, and their children. They're all taken care of.
Re: Ask HN: How does unlimited vacation policy work in your company?
#8I like our unlimited vacation policy.
- It's not used to push us to work more, I don't feel pressure not to take holiday.
- The founders set the example by each taking 2x 2 week holidays a year, plus other days/long weekends here and there.
- Most of the office shuts down for the 1.5-2 weeks over Christmas.
- I've noticed a few people who take a bit more holiday than others, but I don't think they are over-stepping what's reasonable.
- I get much more benefit out of our policy being flexible than unlimited. I've taken holiday at a day's notice before.
Re: Ask HN: How does unlimited vacation policy work in your company?
#9"Unlimited Vacation" is sometimes used to mean "no vacation" or "very limited vacation". But I don't think that's actually the way many employers think about it.
It's more often a way to say "no accrued vacation". That's important in California, when you leave a job, your employer has to pay out unused and accrued vacation. That can be a big liability to keep on the books, so you can remove it with an unlimited vacation policy.
So it's just an accounting thing.
Re: Ask HN: How does unlimited vacation policy work in your company?
#10Where I currently work, we have vacation time around 4 weeks every year. On first year I dont think I ever took any vacations, just a day off from time to time. Now I've been taking vacations 2 weeks in summer and 2 weeks in winter, more or less. Its also more flexible and I can take a day off if I just ask on a timely manner. I dont actually do that very often, I work a lot, but its just a great feeling - knowing that you can take a break sometimes. That feeling alone can kinda motivate you to work and be more productive.