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PTO Policy

At Union Kitchen, we all work hard to contribute to the success of the Company, each in different capacities. In an effort to recognize everyone’s contributions and create a well-balanced life, we have created a Paid Time Off (PTO) policy to provide you with the flexibility of using PTO to meet your personal needs, while recognizing your individual responsibility to manage your paid time off. The following PTO policy outlines specific time off for vacation, sick, holidays and bereavement for all regular, full-time employees and MIT employees Levels 5+ as outlined below. Part-time employees and seasonal or temporary employees are not eligible for vacation, only sick time. 

Vacation 

Level 5+ Employees and Supervisors will begin accruing vacation hours after a waiting period of 180 days (6 months) and will only be able to use it after the first 180 days of continuous employment. Vacation cannot be taken in advance of earning any vacation time, and is accrued as follows: 

  • Levels 5: 1.0 hours of vacation per 34 hours worked (max of 60 hours per year) 
  • Levels 6+: 1.0 hours of vacation per 26 hours worked (max of 80 hours per year) 

Maximum Time Accumulation:

Accrued and unused PTO carries over from one year to the next. PTO you carry over continues to count towards your Time Accrual Maximum. Once you reach your cap of either one hundred and twenty hours (120) hours (Levels 5) or one hundred and sixty (160) hours (Levels 6+) you will not accumulate any more PTO until you use some of the time in your account and drop below the cap. After your balance goes below the cap, you will begin accruing PTO again. However, you will not receive retroactive credit for time worked while you were at the cap limit. 

Vacation is not accrued while on unpaid leave of absence, including worker’s compensation leave. Employees will also not accrue vacation hours if they are suspended. 

When an employee is out on leave that is statutorily required, the employee will continue accruing paid leave in accordance with any statutory requirements. If an employee on a statutory leave uses all paid leave in accordance with the company’s policy and remains unable to return to work, then the remainder of the leave will be unpaid. During the period of unpaid leave, employees will not continue to accrue vacation, consistent with the Company’s policy for all types of unpaid leave. 

Vacation time is provided to employees so that they may rest and enjoy time with their families, and we strongly encourage everyone to use their vacation benefits each year. Vacations must be scheduled and approved by management at least one (1) month in advance. This allows employees and management to prepare for the requested time off and ensure that all staffing needs are met. Employees are responsible for timely requesting time off through the Company’s payroll system. All such vacation requests must be approved by the General Manager prior to taking any time off and finalizing travel arrangements. 

Employees should keep the following in mind when requesting time off: 

  • Although Union Kitchen will attempt to grant all employees their requested PTO, approval of leave at a particular time may be denied due to business needs. 
  • Where business needs preclude allowing two or more employees to take PTO at the same time, Union Kitchen will determine the schedule based on factors including, but not limited to, each employee’s length of service, Union Kitchen’s business needs, and when each PTO request was submitted. 
  • In their discretion, managers may place restrictions on the use of PTO on certain days or during certain times of the year.
  • For unplanned and unexpected PTO, employees must notify their supervisor as soon as possible following standard reporting procedures. Employees are responsible for ensuring that unscheduled PTO is properly recorded. 

Every effort will be made to grant vacation requests, however, the Company reserves the right, if necessary, to designate periods during which employees are expected to schedule their vacation in order to accommodate overall work schedules and/or ensure the employee uses their vacation benefits. The Company reserves the right to deny any request for vacation if, in the Company’s sole judgment, scheduling the vacation would hinder business operations. Vacation requests are granted on a first come, first approved basis. 

Employees may not receive pay in lieu of taking PTO time, including upon separation of employment, regardless of reason.

Sick Leave:

All employees are eligible for paid sick leave. However, employees are not eligible to take paid sick time until they have worked for the Company for ninety (90) days from the date of hire. 

Salaried/Exempt employees will be provided a fixed amount of sick leave each year in days (will be converted into hours on paystubs). Hourly/Non-Exempt employees will be provided a fixed hourly amount of sick leave per hour worked. 

The accrual schedule begins on the first day of employment or the hire date anniversary. Sick Leave accrual starts at a rate of 0.93 hours of sick leave earned for every 40 hours worked. The accrual cap is 40 hours (or 5 days) per year and will renew on the hire date anniversary. 

Hourly/Non-exempt employees will accrue sick time based on total hours worked, including overtime. Salaried/Exempt employees are presumed to work forty (40) hours per workweek (5, 8-hour shifts per day) for purposes of sick time accrual. If an employee’s normal workweek is less than forty (40) hours, accrual will be based on their normal workweek.

The balance cap on the number of sick leave days/hours an employee can have at any given time is forty (40) hours.

Any unused time under this policy will carry over each year up to a maximum accrual of forty (40) hours at the beginning of the employee’s hire date anniversary.

When needed, Hourly/Exempt Employees can only request sick time in increments of no less than one (1) hour, up to a maximum of forty (40) hours per calendar year. Salaried/Non-exempt employees can only request sick time in partial increments (quarter of a day, half a day, full day), up to a maximum of 5 days per calendar year. 

Leave under this Policy may be used in connection with the diagnosis, care, or treatment of an existing health condition for an employee or covered family member, or the preventive care of an employee or employee’s covered family member. “Family members” for purposes of this policy include spouses, registered domestic partners, children (regardless of age), parents (including step-parents and parents-in-law), grandparents, and siblings. 

Leave under this policy may also be used for employees who are the victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking, or any other reason protected under the law. Also, leave under this policy may run concurrently with leave taken under other applicable policies as well as under local, state, or federal law. 

If the need for paid leave is foreseeable, employees shall request time off with their manager in advance. If the need is not foreseeable, and you are sick and unable to come to work, you must personally notify your manager, as soon as possible, but no later than one (1) hour before the start of your shift. For each day you expect to be absent, you must notify your manager at least one (1) hour before the start of your shift. If you become sick during the day, you must notify your manager prior to leaving the workplace. In the event of a medical emergency and you are unable to contact your manager, you may have someone call in your absence on your behalf. 

Union Kitchen may, at their discretion, request that employees provide a doctor’s note should an employee be out of the office for three (3) or more consecutive days of being sick if the PTO time was taken for medical reasons. 

Use of sick leave for any purpose other than what is described above is deemed dishonest and may result in disciplinary action, up to and including termination. 

All paid time off (vacation and/or sick) as outlined in this policy is paid at the employee’s base pay rate at the time PTO is taken, and only for the exact amount of hours absent. 

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Unused time under Vacation & Sick Leave policy is not paid out at the time of separation from employment. However, employees who are re-employed with the Company within a year of separation may be eligible for reinstatement of previously accrued paid sick time.