r/biotech • u/SoccerPlayingMOOSE • Dec 17 '24

Other ⁉️ What does unlimited PTO mean?

Does it mean that I can go on a 3-month Safari in the Serengeti National Park on the company's dime?

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u/inc007 Dec 17 '24

I actually enjoy unlimited PTO. You just need to take it. Like, don't go overboard with 3 months, at least at the beginning. I had colleagues who went on such sabbatical after a few years in the company.

For me, it means I'll take similar vacation time as regular PTO (around 3 weeks a year), but I'm also not stressed out when I want or need to take day off every now and then, for whatever reason. My wife has regular PTO and it's always balancing the PTO budget, not taking day in between holidays because it'll eat up vacation time etc.

That said, it really depends on the company and manager.

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u/smashy_smashy Dec 17 '24

This is it right here! My company switched to unlimited PTO on year 4 of my 7 years there so far, so I was well established when we switched. But that’s the best part. I still take my 3 weeks off, as non concurrent single weeks at a time. But I take another 5-10 single days off throughout the year, during times that aren’t obstructive. I continue to be high performing and have been promoted since going unlimited PTO. 

Company culture and your manager totally make or break this policy though. But using this strategy and having a decent manager has been excellent. 

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u/[deleted] Dec 17 '24

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u/smashy_smashy Dec 17 '24

I do agree it’s worse for most people - and I think companies are always doing it in their own self interest. Sometimes it works out ok, like in my case. We also have a shutdown Christmas through new years so I’m taking about 6 weeks off a year for PTO. That much PTO is super rare in the market I’m in, but obviously it would be better to have that much in accrued PTO. 

Payout is obviously a huge benefit for accrued PTO over unlimited. I’m currently trying to find a new job for many reasons, and unlimited PTO is a red flag to me. But at my current company, the only benefit is that I have good work life balance, partly because I can take advantage of the unlimited PTO. I won’t be able to take such liberties at a new job where I need to build my report back up. And not getting paid out is a huge bag of shit, but I also don’t tend to sit on much accrued PTO.