Does accrued paid personal time off that is not labeled as vacation, need to be payed out upon termination?
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Does accrued paid personal time off that is not labeled as vacation, need to be payed out upon termination?
I was recently terminated from my job. On my final paycheck I think I may have been shorted a payout of personal time off. From what I have found, it looks like the PTO policy in my state can be summarized, if it accrues, it needs to be payed out upon termination. My previous employer provides 3 PTO type, personal, vacation, and sick, and all 3 are set up on an accrual basis. I was payed out my accrued vacation time, but even though the companies HR policy states that personal time is accrued at X weeks per year, I have been told personal is not payed out at termination.
Asked on June 4, 2012 under Employment Labor Law, California
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 12 years ago | Contributor
California law law provides that accrued "vacation" days must be paid on termination, but does not require payment of other paid days off, such as sick leave or personal days (or holidays). If all types of paid time off are lumped together as paid time off (PTO), such as in a "time bank," and not separated out from vacation days, they all must be paid on termination; but if they are tracked separately, then the employer is entitled to only pay the vacation days.
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