Rest and renew

To care for patients, co-workers and your family, you must take care of yourself first. Taking time away from work is vital for your health and well-being. We encourage you to use paid time off (PTO) to rest and renew. That is why the health system provides paid time off for eligible full-time and part-time employees (those who work 0.5 FTE or more).

Our program is designed with flexibility to meet your need for paid time off, regardless of the reason: vacation, personal time, sick time or holidays outside of the eight provided by the health system.

Holidays in addition to PTO

In addition to PTO, we offer paid hours for eight holidays:

  • New Year’s Day
  • Martin Luther King Jr. Day
  • Memorial Day
  • Independence Day
  • Labor Day
  • Thanksgiving Day and the following Friday
  • Christmas Day

Full-time employees receive eight hours per holiday. Holiday hours are prorated for part-time employees when they are at least a 0.5 FTE.

Holiday credit is paid to all full-time and part-time employees 0.5 FTE or greater, regardless of whether they work on the holiday. Holiday credit hours are paid for the holiday and cannot be banked for use at a later date.

Most non-exempt (hourly) employees who work on the recognized holiday receive 1.5 times their base pay for all hours worked on the holiday. Most exempt (salaried) employees do not receive holiday-worked pay.

PTO accrual

Each pay period, eligible employees accumulate PTO hours based upon their FTE and completed years of service. The table below shows PTO accrual.

Years of service**

PTO accrual rate per pay period

Maximum hours in PTO bank

PTO days accrued per year

Annual holiday hours

<1

5.23 hours

300

17+3***

64

1 and less than 5

6.15 hours

300

20

64

5 and less than 10

7.68 hours

300

25

64

10 and less than 15

8.63 hours

300

28

64

15 or more

9.11 hours

300

29.6

64

* Part-time employees with at least a 0.5 FTE are eligible for PTO credit on a prorated basis.
** Kansas City employees hired prior to Dec. 31, 2014, view accrual chart on 24/7 (network access required).
*** Please review policy 3.07 Paid Time Off for more information on role specific accrual schedules.

Key points for Olathe Health employees transitioning to health system PTO:

  • Accrued PTO balance as of December 23, 2023, will roll over to your new health system PTO bank.
  • Accrued sick leave hours as of December 23, 2023, will move to an Extended Illness Reserve (EIR) account. EIR hours will take effect December 24, 2023.

How EIR works:

  • EIR account hours will be forfeited when an employee with an EIR account leaves the health system, moves into a PRN position or moves to a non-benefits-eligible position (less than a 0.5 FTE).
  • Sick-leave balances will no longer accrue and EIR does not accrue additional hours.

How EIR can be used:

  • EIR hours may be used for all qualifying FMLA leaves, both continuous and intermittent, approved through the health system’s third-party administrator, The Hartford.
  • If the leave of absence is for the employee’s own condition, EIR hours can also be used during the 7-calendar-day short-term disability waiting period and to supplement short-term disability benefits paying up to 100% of their base pay.
  • EIR hours will be applied upon the verification of qualifying leaves unless the employee requests otherwise.