Back-To-School Time-Off Tips

What does the law say on parents’ rights to take time away from work to attend to school matters?

The summer heat is still blasting, but store shelves are stocked with school supplies and in some parts of the country, kids are already back in class. Whatever the end of summer means to you, for millions of families, it signals the return to school for children in preschool through college.
 

This means your employees will likely need to take a few hours out of their workday occasionally to participate in their children’s education. Parents’ fall calendars are often packed with school events, parent-teacher conferences, and/or parent meetings – some of which will inevitably occur during their usual working hours – and any flexibility you give them to attend these events, or even volunteer in the classroom or chaperone a field trip, will be greatly appreciated.

Ten states and the District of Columbia have passed laws protecting parents’ rights to take small increments of time away from work to attend to school matters. They vary widely in their specifics regarding eligibility for leave, whether the time is paid or unpaid, and the amount of time available for use. 
 

It’s a best practice to offer flexibility to all employees so that they can meet the obligations of daily life while still performing at their peak at work. It goes a long way toward making an employee feel good about where they work when they can see their child perform in a school play, take their dog to the vet, or accept an appliance delivery without worrying about missing a couple of hours of work or needing to take a full day off.

The beginning of fall is a great time to review your established time off policies to see how you can accommodate parents and guardians who need to meet school obligations as well as giving all employees the flexibility to attend to the other small necessities of life.

In many cases, your established policies may not need to change. Depending on the needs of your workplace, your state laws, and the employee’s position, this could mean allowing employees to make up a few hours of work, take an extended lunch period, shift their schedule to start earlier or later to still get a full day in, or use personal, vacation, or PTO time in small increments.

This article originally appeared here. 

Rachel Sobel is a seasoned writer, editor, and content strategist who produces ThinkHR’s webinars, blog, and newsletters as Content Editor for the Knowledge Operations team. Visit www.thinkhr.com  Connect Rachel Sobel Follow @RealThinkHR