Had an interview today that I feel okay to good-ish about. Was hoping to talk to the person I’d be working under but they were tied up on time sensitive stuff so I just talked to the HR person.
He was telling me that in addition to a very modest amount of conventional PTO, they give a paid weekday off every three weeks. It was spun like a good thing because the amount of total time off was more than the national average, but that’s pretty dishonest right? PTO is conventionally understood to be time you can take off whenever for whatever reason, not fixed days off like holidays.
I generally like the vibe of the place but it’s got weird things like that, plus not being open to hybrid because it doesn’t align with their “values” and some Russel Brand quotes hung up on the walls
My job does something kind of similar, but it’s every quarter you get 8 hours of PTO to use on top of normal PTO, and the normal PTO is pretty standard from my understanding. They also use it as a way to not acknowledge controversial federal holidays (like Columbus Day), but still give everyone the time off they would have gotten.
Is the “extra” PTO conditional on some administrative task? Last place I worked at had conditional “bonus” PTO that was just a legal way to make sure a portion of your PTO can’t accrue and get paid out.
Not that the accounting trick part is a huge deal, time off is time off.
I kind of heard something like this from a lady who did janitorial work for a local government. But, she was describing that as a part of benefit packages that were way more generous when she started working 30 years ago.
Where I work, they don’t give you PTO until you’ve worked for them for a full year.
Russell Brand quote tells me you should run
I’m extending a little grace because it’s an addiction recovery center and apparently he’s very outspoken about addiction and all that, so I can see how it got there. But if hired that would be like my #2 thing to bring up to my boss like “hey you know that guy is a SA’er right??”
@tiny fishing Your decision should balance the immediate positives, like the vibe and potential for regular time off, against the potential negatives, such as inflexible work arrangements and any cultural mismatches. Trust your instincts—if something feels off now, it may become a bigger issue later on.
If you decide to proceed with this opportunity, keep an open mind but also be ready to advocate for yourself regarding flexibility and any other concerns. If you choose to look elsewhere, this experience has given you a clearer idea of what to look for in a workplace.
It honestly sounds like a way to keep you from accruing PTO (that they will eventually have to pay you for when you leave)
Like others have said, if the vibe is off maybe say “yeah, nah” (unless your current work situation is worse)
Cannot emphasize how right LaGG is for this one. I wouldn’t want to surprise my coworkers with it because I like them, but otherwise yeah. Make some money, realize it’s not your tempo, and leave. You don’t even need to feel guilty knowing that it’s self serving; my therapist said so.
