Q. We have a six-month introductory period for all new hires and PTO accrues during this time. But employees aren’t eligible to use it until they complete the six-month period. Can an exempt employee be docked pay if they want a vacation day or sick day during this time? Or, after the six-month introductory period, if an exempt employee has exhausted his PTO accrual, can he be docked pay? – Mike, Kansas
A. Yes, an employer can dock an exempt employee’s pay when the employee has exhausted any entitlement to paid time off, such as for vacation or sick leave, provided that the employer remembers that exempt employees generally cannot be docked pay for partial day absences without running afoul of the “salary pay” requirement of the Fair Labor Standards Act.
In other words, salaried exempt employees are entitled to full salary for those days on which they perform any work. If an exempt employee takes a full day away from work, however, he or she need not be compensated for that time. So, the answer to both of your questions is “yes,” provided that the employee in question misses a full day of work on each such occasion.
