Unlimited Holiday Policy
The discussion
Elena: Our company is considering scrapping the fixed holiday allowance and letting people take as much leave as they want, as long as the work gets done. I love it, because treating adults like adults is exactly what keeps people from leaving.
Jamal: I worked somewhere with that policy, and people actually took less leave than before. Nobody wanted to be the one seen as taking advantage, so the unofficial norm became about two weeks a year.
Mei: There's also a money side that nobody mentions. With a fixed allowance, unused days get paid out when you leave; with unlimited leave there's nothing to pay out, which is a quiet saving for the company and a loss for us.
Elena: That depends on the culture, surely. If managers take a proper month off themselves and say so loudly, the rest of the team follows.
Jamal: Maybe, but you can't rely on every manager being that person. I'd be more comfortable with a generous fixed minimum, say thirty days, that everyone is actually required to take.
Mei: A required minimum answers my point too, because then there's a number on paper that still has value. Honestly, Elena, I think I'd rather have thirty guaranteed days than unlimited days in theory.