As spring approaches, employees frequently start planning to take time away from the office. While many employees will use vacation time or other paid time off (PTO), some employees may call in sick only to spend a day recovering in the sun. Employers can reduce the risk of an inadvertently understaffed office and employee abuse of sick time on particularly sunny days, while also providing adequate time away from the office for employees, by maintaining well-drafted policies on attendance, vacation, sick time, and PTO.

Employers should consider implementing or revising policies letting employees know:

Employers also should consider that employees legitimately need to take sick days or medical leave from time to time, and employers may be required to provide sick days, medical leave, or disability leave under the FMLA, the ADA, or applicable state and local laws.

Employers must also consider paid sick leave requirements. Numerous states and municipalities have passed laws over the last few years requiring covered employers to provide paid sick leave. Although only a handful of states plus the District of Columbia have passed statewide paid sick leave laws, multiple municipalities across the country have passed paid sick leave laws. Momentum towards enacting both state and municipal paid sick leave laws continues. For example, a new statewide paid sick leave requirement is expected to be signed by Vermont's governor shortly.

Even when not legally required, many employers provide employees with a certain number of paid or unpaid sick days throughout the year that can be used for doctor's appointments, injuries, or illnesses of a short duration (such as a cold).

Practical Law has many model policies with integrated drafting notes to help employers implement or revise policies addressing time away from the office. For more information, see the following Standard Documents:

For more information on leave laws generally and state-specific leave requirements, see the following resources: