Vacation Policies for Part Time Employees
A vacation is a period of absence from a scheduled work, a definite trip or travel, usually for the exclusive purpose of tourism or recreation. Normally people spend a vacation during special holiday seasons, or on specific vacation observances. Vacations are also often spent together with family or friends. The concept of a vacation differs according to individuals; for some, a vacation signifies a time out from the routine life and the usual worries while others see a vacation as an extended holiday break. Vacation can be broadly categorized into luxury vacation, ski vacation, weekend getaway, cruising vacation and other types of vacations.
A common type of vacation is a paid vacation. This may be in any form like a week or two at a resort or a cruise or even a weekend in a cabin in a private lodge. In a paid vacation an employee is paid for his time. Usually employers reimburse employees for all their expenses including food, accommodation and entertainment, but in some cases, the employer covers only a part of the employees expenses. The employee may have to cover the expenses only for that particular week.
A paid holiday is a paid holiday otherwise known as a l. vacatio a being free from a duty, service, etc. It was used to mean the taking of a holiday by an individual against his salary, but the etymology of the word has made it apply to ‘a voluntary absence’ rather than ‘duty’. In British English however, a paid holiday is generally defined as a ‘vacation’ but can also be used to define a period of vacation. The concept of paid vacation has roots in the Latin verb ‘vacare’ meaning to draw one’s self, especially with a purpose of going somewhere.
An employee is entitled to a certain number of vacation days off from his regular work schedule. Normally the employer determines the number of days of vacation to be taken by the employee and when these days off will start and end. The employee may use these days for his own personal purposes like visiting family and friends, participating in sports activities, sightseeing or other similar activities. However, if he needs to take more than the designated number of days, an Employer must give the employee written notice specifying the number of days of vacation he requires and the procedure for taking the vacation. If the employee fails to give his consent for a specified period of time, the Employer may make the choice of filling the vacation days with work, thereby terminating the employment relationship.
Employers may not use vacation as a replacement for regular Holidays; they may give notice prior to the start of the vacation to the employee regarding his requirement of taking a holiday. For an employee to have a vacation, he must be registered under the Employer’s Holiday Plan. If the employee has agreed to the Employer’s Holiday Plan, he is entitled to one holiday with pay and his entitlement to holidays and amusement is subject to the terms and conditions of the plan. The employees who are not registered under the Employer’s Holiday Plan or the Vacation Holidays Act cannot enjoy any form of holiday or vacation leave. Vacation days off are generally scheduled for the first two weeks of a month and the employees are entitled to their normal holiday days thereafter.
If an employee can show that he is unable to travel or cannot manage to take off because of financial problems, he cannot demand for a vacation. In such cases, many days off with pay are given to the employee by many employers. If you are not satisfied with the above procedures for vacations, you may discuss it with your supervisor or the human resources department of your organization. If you are a part of a large organization and you do not have much control over vacations, many companies offer vacation time policy for their full-time employees. However, the benefits of such policies are limited and may not provide all inclusive coverage for all the travel requirements you might require.