compressed schedule and holidays

[nmsewell]

I'm a New Mexican, working as a salaried employee on a compressed schedule. On the upcoming holiday(President's Day), my employer notified me she will be docking my accrued vacation by two hours. Her reasoning:
-other employees are getting an 8 hour holiday, why should I get a paid for 10 hour holiday?
I am really confused.

Speech Path no Math

 

[cbg]

She does not HAVE to pay you for a holiday at all. If she only wants to pay you for 8 hours instead of 10, that's still 8 hours of pay she is giving you that she is not required to give. If she then wants to deduct two hours from your PTO to make up the rest of your regular day, there is nothing in the law that is going to tell her she can't.

Fair? Possibly not. Legal? Yes.

 

[nmsewell]

mea culpa
Didn't give all the facts-My company actually gives 11 paid holidays a year according to my contract. I work a compressed schedule at their request. I get 40 hours of PTO. By the time she subtracts 22 hours of PTO for my "holidays", that leaves me with less than two days a year to be sick. I guess I could (Maybe) see the sense in all of this if I was an hourly person, but...

 

[pattytx]

Sorry, the additional facts don't change the legality of cbg's answer.

Having said that, however, when you say "salaried", do you mean exempt? There is a reason I'm asking.

 

[nmsewell]

yes, exempt

 

[pattytx]

I might consider calling the federal DOL and asking this question.

Would a PTO plan of 5 days per year that encompasses 22 hours per year that is required to be used as holiday pay qualify as a bona fide sick pay plan should I become ill or injured?

Here's the regulation that I'm thinking about:

(2) Deductions from pay may be made for absences of one or more
full days occasioned by sickness or disability (including work-related
accidents) if the deduction is made in accordance with a bona fide
plan, policy or practice of providing compensation for loss of salary
occasioned by such sickness or disability. The employer is not required
to pay any portion of the employee's salary for full-day absences for
which the employee receives compensation under the plan, policy or
practice. Deductions for such full-day absences also may be made before
the employee has qualified under the plan, policy or practice, and
after the employee has exhausted the leave allowance thereunder.

29CFR541.602 - Salary basis.

Although the number of days required for a plan to be "bona fide" is not defined in the reg, the DOL has issued opinions that it must be at least 5 days. See where I'm going with this relative to sick pay?