Employee has used all PTO -- do we still have to pay sick days?

An exempt employee uses their PTO for sick days and vacation. However, during the year they frequently run out. If they have used up the period's allotment of PTO, can that employee still use PTO if they or their child gets sick and has to go home? My timekeeping people say yes, but how can that be since they have used up their PTO and have not tried to accrue it like others have?

Rita Risser's Response:

Why haven't you fired this person? She has exceeded her PTO and that is grounds for termination, unless she or a family member has a serious health condition under the Family Medical Leave Act or a disability under the Americans with Disabilities Act.

I suggest you give her a final written warning that any further PTO use until accrued is grounds for immediate termination. Of course, I am assuming that no one else has exceeded their accrued PTO.

If you want to keep this person employed, you can legally give her time off for sickness without pay. Under the Fair Labor Standards Act, an exempt employee's pay may be deducted for one day or longer without changing the exempt status. When this person wants to take vacation, however, and there is no accrued PTO, the vacation should be denied.

This situation indicates why vacation and sick time should be treated separately. Someone like this can take two weeks of vacation at the beginning of the year, then be "out of PTO" when they need it. By keeping the two separate, you won't have people using up sick days for vacation.

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