--- title: "🌐 Guide to PTO" canonical: "https://handbook.rocket.chat/space/PEOPLE/360088461/%F0%9F%8C%90%20Guide%20to%20PTO" format: markdown --- # **🌴 Rocket.Chat PTO Policy** At Rocket.Chat, we trust our team to know when it’s time to pause, rest, and reset. Paid Time Off (PTO) is here to give you the flexibility to care for your personal needs while staying energised and engaged at work. In addition to your vacation days, sick leave, parental leave, and country-specific holidays, PTO gives you flexibility to take care of yourself, your loved ones, and your life outside of work. Whether it’s a few hours off for a personal appointment or a full day to unwind after a big release, PTO supports your work-life balance. We trust our team to take time when they need it and to return energised, refreshed, and ready to collaborate. Let’s walk you through how to make the most of this benefit. 💫 --- ## **✨ What Can I Use PTO For?** PTO at Rocket.Chat is intentionally flexible. Here are some examples on how to use it for: - 🎉 Celebrating birthdays (yours or others!) - 🧘‍♀️ Taking mental health breaks - 🐾 Taking your pet to the vet - 🛠️ Home or tech maintenance - 🧑‍🍳 Exploring hobbies or passions - 🧘 Long walks, exercise, or nature time - 🛏️ Sleeping in after a long night (like a major release) - 🎬 Movie day or RPG session with friends - 🛍️ Trips to the park or mall - 🗓️ Doctor’s appointments - 🧳 Quick getaways or personal days --- ## 📅 **PTO Guidelines** Just like we recommend spreading your vacation days throughout the year, we also encourage you to **use your PTO thoughtfully and distribute it across the calendar**. And please remember to **give your team advance notice — ideally at least 15 days** — if you’re planning time off for a known event. This helps ensure smooth planning and fair coverage for everyone. 🔔 **Important Note: **If you're taking +4 consecutive days off, make sure to submit it as **vacation leave** in Zoho People. **🎉 Celebrating Birthdays: **Birthday PTO should be submitted in the system on your preferred day. Rocketeers who wish to swap their Birthday PTO (e.g., if it falls midweek and they'd prefer to take a Friday off instead) **are allowed to do so.** To make the change, simply submit your request under the Birthday PTO category, and it will be automatically approved by the system. --- ## **⚠️ Emergency PTO** Emergencies happen—and that’s okay. - Notify your manager **as soon as possible** - Request the PTO in Zoho,  even if you're only able to do so afterwards — it ensures we stay organized and maintain accurate records. - Can’t access Zoho? Ask the People Team to log it for you - Don’t forget to block your calendar. --- ## **✅ How to Request PTO** ### **1. Talk to Your Leader** - Start by having a conversation with your manager about your planned time off. 📌 **Important:** Managers may decline requests in cases of operational impact, overlapping leaves, or during peak business periods — but communication will always be transparent. 💬 **Tip:** Being open and honest with your leader about the reason for your time off helps with approval, planning and understanding. However, if it’s something personal, don’t feel pressured to disclose the details — your privacy is respected. ### **2. Log It on Zoho People** - Go to **Zoho People > Leave Tracker > Apply Leave > **Choose the Correct Category ### 🔔 **How to Sync Zoho People Leaves (Holidays, PTO, and Vacation) with Google Calendar** 1. Open **Zoho People** 2. In the left-hand menu, click on **Leave Tracker** 3. To the right of the Apply Leave button, **click the three-dot button** 4. Select **"Google Calendar Options"** 5. Under calendar options, choose Google to sync your Leave and Holiday data 6. Authorize access and follow the steps to log in with your Google account 7. **Important**: In the Select a calendar to push data step, **choose your email address (usually the last option)**. **If you skip this or select the wrong calendar, your leave may sync to a private calendar that others cannot view**. 8. Click Push to confirm, and you're all set! --- ## **💡 Best Practices for PTO Culture** ### **✔️ What To Do** - **Out-Of-Office**: Set it on Rocket.Chat on any DM by writing /time-off start. When you come back, just write on any DM /time-off end. - **Google Calendar OOO**: Mark your days off to auto-decline invites - **Turn off notifications**: You deserve a full break 🔕 - **Sync calendars**: Use Zoho’s Calendar Sync with Google for visibility - Share **good vibes** in #good-vibes 🧘 - Always plan ahead and communicate! ### **❌ What NOT To Do** - Don’t guilt-trip others for taking time off - Don’t skip breaks thinking it’s better for performance—it isn’t Respect and empathy fuel our culture. Everyone recharges differently. ⚡ --- ## **👩‍💼 For Team Leaders** You play a key role in creating a healthy time-off culture. Here’s how: - Talk about PTO during 1:1s - Support teammates in planning time off - When a team member requests time off, encourage a transparent and respectful dialogue. - Decline requests only when necessary, with transparency 📌 **Important:** While understanding the context can help with planning, **never pressure anyone to explain the reason for their PTO**. If they choose to share, listen with empathy — if not, respect their privacy. --- ## **🔁 Coming Back from PTO** Ease the transition with these quick steps: - Set aside time to read key messages - Reconnect with teammates via quick syncs - Prioritize your tasks and ease back in --- ## **🧾 Contract-Specific Rules & Notes** ### **Employees Brazil (CLT)** - Requests for **+4  consecutive days off** must be submitted as **vacation leave**, in line with **CLT regulations**. ⚖️ **Vacation vs. PTO: Use Responsibly** In line with CLT regulations, employees can choose to sell part of their vacation days — and we fully respect that legal right. However, we kindly ask everyone to use the **PTO benefit in good faith**. PTO is a company-provided perk, designed to complement (not replace) your CLT vacation. Selling your vacation and then using PTO to cover that same period goes against the spirit of this benefit and creates an unfair situation. We trust everyone to make responsible decisions, keeping fairness and balance in mind for the whole team. ### **European Employees (via Deel)** - Vacation, Parental Leave and Sick Leave / Doctor’s Order Leave must be recorded in both **Deel and Zoho People**. --- ## **📊 Zoho People PTO Categories** - Flexible PTO (Casual, Event, Doctor’s Appointments, Half Day) - Birthday PTO (Automatically Approved) - Sick Leave / Doctor’s Order Leave - Vacations (BR Employees) - Vacation (Contractors) - Vacation (EU Employees) - Vacation (US Employees) - Parental Leave --- Feel free to reach out to the People Team if you need help planning your time off—or just want to make sure you’re using your benefits to the fullest. We’re here to help you thrive. 🌟 ---