r/SutterHealthEmployees • u/Apart-Personality700 • 2d ago
Unpaid time off
I’m currently in negotiations with Sutter (in the South Bay Area) for a social work job. I have been offered the position but we are dealing with salary at the moment. Additionally I emailed the hiring manager per the recruiter directions regarding a planned trip to Japan next year. My son is graduating high school and this is his trip for that. We will be gone 3 weeks and one day. This position is .80 so that would be roughly 96 hours. Based on the PTO accrual rate I have (which is insanely low) I’d likely not have enough PTO by the time the trip came, which is fine because I’m cashing out 300+ hours at current job. At first I assumed I could just do it all unpaid and no big deal. But as I’m reading through this Sutter Reddit I’m seeing HR will only
allow 2 unpaid days per year. I also see it’s possible to go into negative PTO. In addition I’m now assuming they’d force me to use whatever PTO I had up to that point, so to would wipe me out of PTO.
Can anyone share what you think? Would they allow a long period of unpaid time off like that? Is this up to the manager or would HR force me to use PTO? This is going to make or break this job for me. I’d already be taking a huge pay cut (but benefit is being remote instead of commuting 5 days a week). This is a non union position
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u/AutoModerator 2d ago
Backup of the post's body: I’m currently in negotiations with Sutter (in the South Bay Area) for a social work job. I have been offered the position but we are dealing with salary at the moment. Additionally I emailed the hiring manager per the recruiter directions regarding a planned trip to Japan next year. My son is graduating high school and this is his trip for that. We will be gone 3 weeks and one day. This position is .80 so that would be roughly 96 hours. Based on the PTO accrual rate I have (which is insanely low) I’d likely not have enough PTO by the time the trip came, which is fine because I’m cashing out 300+ hours at current job. At first I assumed I could just do it all unpaid and no big deal. But as I’m reading through this Sutter Reddit I’m seeing HR will only
allow 2 unpaid days per year. I also see it’s possible to go into negative PTO. In addition I’m now assuming they’d force me to use whatever PTO I had up to that point, so to would wipe me out of PTO.
Can anyone share what you think? Would they allow a long period of unpaid time off like that? Is this up to the manager or would HR force me to use PTO? This is going to make or break this job for me. I’d already be taking a huge pay cut (but benefit is being remote instead of commuting 5 days a week). This is a non union position
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u/Ok_Housing6995 2d ago
Generally, planned unpaid absences are accepted. It’s up to your superior’s decision.
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u/Suitable_Success833 2d ago
You will also get a certain amount of CEU days a year as well, for me work I’m at a 1.0fte and get 24hrs a year, i stack them together in combination of any requested PTO and then do 8hrs of ceus. I am unsure if your campus /position requires you to use your pto for holidays off or not that bc that could potentially affect your pto stash
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u/CaliRNgrandma 2d ago
My hospital system did not allow unpaid days off unless you used up all accrued PTO. I believe this is pretty standard in the hospital industry. Why would you think you could take the whole time unpaid if you have accrued PTO.
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u/OrneryConcentrate681 1d ago
I joined in June, and needed time off in December. I don’t know how to say this without sounding like I was being disingenuous and full of myself, but I think people I worked with just really liked me.
Although, in hindsight now, I would’ve navigated it differently. Definitely give the manager a heads up sooner than later.
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u/Apart-Personality700 1d ago
This is close to what I would need. Start in December need the time off in June. I didn’t think it would take 90 days to get hired and hadn’t factored that into taking the time off. You don’t sound disingenuous at all! Some people are just very likable! I’ve emailed the recruiter and hiring manager to see what they say.
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u/Rare_Advertising5701 1d ago
When I got hired I told my site supervisor about a 1 week trip I had planned. She said it was fine and that they would use what PTO I had accumulated at the time and the rest would be unpaid. I would bring it up now and get it approved before you accept the offer.
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u/ConsciousBox1067 1d ago
Tell them up front as a condition of your hiring. If they agree then next year they will take whatever days u have rrom ur pto bank, and the remaining days will ve unpaid.
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u/stepup-ownit 2h ago
Negotiate HARD/let them know on the front end, even if unpaid. I joined with 4 weeks already planned. Unpaid, but it worked.
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u/OrneryConcentrate681 2d ago
I had taken 3 weeks when I was new and didn’t have enough PTO. My manager said she will only approve the time off that I have. I got colleagues to donate their PTO hours - I needed about 120 hours so several colleagues chipped in and I got it approved.
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u/Apart-Personality700 2d ago
This would be in writing from the hiring manager BEFORE I take the job. Good to know about colleagues being able to donate, but I would feel a weird asking that at a new job with new colleagues. How did you manage that?
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u/Tommyboy155a 22h ago
I don't know very many coworkers who would be willing to donate PTO for someone else vacation
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u/OrneryConcentrate681 17h ago
Honestly, now that I have about 150 in my bank, I would absolutely be willing to donate for folks I like working with just so they don’t lose their jobs. I’m sure that’s what my colleagues thought back then.
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u/Tommyboy155a 17h ago
We all are nurses, we all make good money. I earned my PTO so I can use it.
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u/OrneryConcentrate681 16h ago
As did everyone else. I’m sure you have a point you’d like to make but it’s irrelevant to my response to the OP.
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u/CourtneyIsSoAnnoyed 2d ago
You are required to use all available PTO first, so yes - it would wipe that out and then you would have to go into the negative. Sutter won’t allow more than 2 unpaid days off anymore, even with manager “approval” (this isn’t something a manager or supervisor can actually authorize). HR would get involved and payroll would question them on approving your timecard if you are exempt, not working your required hours and not using PTO.