Retroactive Vacation Policy change

I am from Kentucky, and have worked for a company for 4.5 years. We recently acquired a new COO who is attempting to change the vacation policy retroactively. According to our employee handbook, our policy states that we are eligible to take paid vacation after 90 days of employment. The new COO states that we should not be eligible to use our accrued vacation until after a full year of employment, and is now adjusting our vacation time from the date we were hired to present. In other words, any time already taken prior to our one year anniversary date, is considered "unearned" and is being subtracted from what we have accrued to arrive at our current "earned" time that we are eligible to take, some of which are considered in arrears until our anniversary date of hire. He states that the policy in our handbook prior to his arrival is null, void, and meaningless.

Below is the wording of the policy that was in effect prior to his arrival concerning eligibility for paid vacation time off:

POLICY AND SCOPE
It is the policy of (*company name*) that all employees holding full-time status shall earn and accrue vacation leave. Vacation leave is paid al the employee’s base rate of pay and does not include overtime or any special forms of compensation. It will be tile responsibility of the employee and the Department Manager involved to complete the appropriate form.

PURPOSE
To provide policy and procedures which govern the accrual and use of vacation leave. It is intended that vacation leave is scheduled time off for rest, relaxation and personal pursuits.

PROCEDURE
Vacation is earned and credited to an employee’s record each bi-weekly pay period according to years of service at tile following rates:

Hourly Employees

Year Paid Vacation Time Per Year Accrued Rate
0-1 5 days (40 hours) 1.54 per bi-weekly pay period
2-4 10days (80 hours) 3.08 per bi-weekly pay period
5-and up 15 days (120 hours) 4.62 per bi-weekly pay period

A. Employees start to accrue vacation time beginning their first day of employment
B. Employees are eligible to utilize paid vacation time after completing the initial 90 day probationary period.C. Vacation leave will be prorated by hours worked. See schedule above.
D. Vacation leave cannot exceed an employee’s vacation accrued hours.

There is a "weak" contract disclaimer in the original booklet. However, it is my belief there is an implied contract in that "prior practice" would now be in force.

My question: Is it legal to alter policy retroactively to the detriment of the employee? Any legal remedy? Thanks for the response.

Is it legal to alter policy retroactively to the detriment of the employee? Yes.

Any legal remedy? No.

The new COO would be wiser (from an employee relations standpoint) to grandfather the current employees and change the policy for new employees coming in but he's not obligated to do so.

Are you serious

If you take off a few weeks for a vacation with time you thought you had earned, and then come back to find out a new policy was put into effect while you were gone, and that all your vacation time was unearned. So you quit, and now you owe them money?? Is that what you are saying, and that is legal? What a world!!!