LEAVES & TIME OFF POLICIES

The employee leave policy outlines the guidelines and procedures for requesting, granting, and managing leaves for all employees of the organization. This policy aims to provide a fair and consistent framework that ensures employees can maintain a healthy work-life balance while ensuring operational efficiency.

Types Of Leaves

3.1 Planned Leave

The planned leave allows employees to avail 12 days of planned leave annually. This policy aims to provide employees with the opportunity to take time off for personal relaxation while ensuring business operations continue smoothly. 

• All regular full-time employees are entitled to 12 paid planned annual leave days, accrued monthly. 

• All regular full-time employee is entitled to 12 days of planned annual leave per calendar year. 

• Employees must submit leave requests through mail to their respective managers at least 3 days before the requested leave start date to seek approval.

• Unutilized planned annual leave days will be carried forward to the next financial year.

• Planned leave is subject to prior approval from management. If not approved, the leave will be considered as Leave Without Pay (LWP)

3.2 Unplanned Leave

The unplanned leave policy outlines the procedures and expectations for employees who need to take unplanned or emergency leave due to unforeseen circumstances.

•  All full-time employees are entitled to 12 paid unplanned annual leave days, accrued monthly.

• Employees must inform their immediate supervisor or manager as soon as possible in case of unexpected absence. 

• Unutilized unplanned annual leave days will be carried forward to the next financial year.

• Unplanned leave, including emergency absences, requires immediate notification to management. If not approved, the leave will also be considered as LWP. 

• For medical leave exceeding 2 days, a medical prescription or relevant documentation must be provided to support the leave request 

3.3 Festival Holidays

Planify provides 12 number of festivity holidays, allowing them to celebrate important cultural and religious festivals. This policy aims to foster a diverse and inclusive work environment while ensuring operational continuity.

Employees are entitled to avail a total of 12 festival holidays during the calendar year.

Out of 12 festival holidays, 3 days that is Republic Day, Independence Day, and Gandhi Jayanti are designated as mandatory public holidays, which will be observed by all employees.

The remaining 9 festival holidays are optional, allowing employees to choose the festivals they would like to celebrate.

Employees must submit their preferred festival holiday choices through the designated holiday calendar and also to their respective supervisors.

An employee can only take the holidays based on these criteria. It is to ensure that everyone has an equal opportunity to observe holidays that are significant to them. 

• Holidays Based on Religion: Employees belonging to a certain religion can avail the leaves of their religion, caste, and creed. These leaves won't be open for the other employees. 

• Holidays Based on Areas: Certain regional or local holidays are important to employees based on the area where they have been brought up. e.g. - Chaath Puja for Bihar, UP, and Chattisgarh people, Lohri for Punjab, etc. 

Communication

The HR department provides a list of festivals that employees can choose from, along with the corresponding dates.

A calendar highlighting both mandatory public holidays and optional festival holidays will be circulated to all employees at the beginning of each year.

The festival holidays policy is designed to accommodate employees' diverse cultural and religious backgrounds while ensuring effective work management. This policy is subject to change and all employees are expected to adhere to its provision.

3.4 Work from Home

All employees are eligible to request one work-from-home day per month, subject to approval by their manager. Employees must submit a formal request for a work-from-home day to their immediate supervisor at least two days in advance. Once the WFH day is approved by the manager, the employee must inform the HR department of the approved WFH day. This is to ensure accurate record-keeping and to maintain transparency regarding employee work schedules.
Employees need to present the workflow for the day they worked from home and get it approved by the RM to avail work-from-home benefits.

3.5 Leave without Pay

• Leave informed or approved but unpaid due to minus leave balance.

• When an employee takes time off from work that is not covered by leave, usually because they have a negative leave balance, it is known as leave without pay (LWP). 

3.6 Leave Deduction and Compensation Policy

Purpose: The purpose of this policy is to ensure that all employees are aware of the process for handling leave deductions from their salary and the alternative option to compensate for the same by adjusting upcoming leaves. Our goal is to promote a fair work environment while motivating employees to take responsibility for any backlog or missed work due to leave.

Leave Deduction Policy:

1. Leave Deductions:

   • If an employee takes leave beyond their entitled leave balance, the corresponding amount will be deducted from their salary as per company guidelines.

   • This deduction will be applied in the payroll for the month in which the leave was taken.

2. Compensation Option:

   • Employees who experience leave deductions may cover the deduction by compensating through non-taking of leave in subsequent months.

   • For every day of leave deducted, an employee can adjust it by refraining from taking leave in the upcoming month(s). This will help to "cover" the days lost without impacting the salary further.

3. Goal:

   • The goal of this compensation option is not to penalize employees but to motivate everyone to stay engaged and proactively manage any backlog of work.

   • This approach allows employees to regain any lost time while maintaining the productivity of the team.

4. Process:

   • Employees should inform their manager or HR team if they wish to compensate for their leave deduction by adjusting future leave days.

   • The non-taking of leave in the subsequent months will be tracked to ensure that the compensation is accurately accounted for.

3.7 Sabbatical leave policy

Eligibility
All full-time employees who have completed a minimum of 1.5 years of continuous service with the company are eligible to apply for a sabbatical leave. Employees must have a satisfactory performance record and receive approval from their supervisor and HR department.

Duration of leave
Sabbatical leave duration can vary depending on the employee's tenure and the purpose of the sabbatical.

Application Process

Employees must submit a formal request for sabbatical leave to their supervisor and HR department at least 3 months in advance of the proposed start date. The request should include details of the proposed sabbatical activities, duration, and how the employee plans to ensure a smooth transition of responsibilities.

Approval
Supervisors and HR will review sabbatical leave requests based on business needs, staffing considerations, and the proposed purpose and duration of the sabbatical. Approval will be granted at the discretion of management, considering the employee's performance, tenure, and the potential impact on the team and organization.

Return to work
Employees are required to return to work immediately following the end of their approved sabbatical leave. 

PF & ESIC
During an employee's sabbatical leave, they will not be enrolled in the Provident Fund (PF), company Health Insurance Plan and Employee State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) schemes.