The Health Alliance employs a diverse workforce with diverse needs and interests. We believe in promoting a balance between our associates’ home and work lives. The lifestyles section includes benefits for time off, convenience shopping and banking, entertainment, learning and development, Employee Assistance, and flexibility at work. Contact human resources for additional information and enrollment materials for these benefits.

The Health Alliance provides a Paid Time Off (PTO) program that allows you to accumulate time to use for vacation, scheduled holidays, personal time, and sick time. You earn PTO hours each pay period, based on the hours you are paid (maximum of 40 hours in a week) and your total years of service.

You begin earning PTO from your date of hire. How soon you can begin using those hours depends on your work status:

How Benefits Are Determined
The chart below shows how you accrue PTO hours. The chart is based on an 80-hour pay period. If you are paid for less than 80 hours in a pay period, you earn prorated PTO hours.

If your work status is ... and you have this many years of service... then your accrual factor
is . . .		 then you earn up to this many PTO hours per pay period.
Nonexempt Less than 5 years .0846 6.77
  At least 5 years but less than 15 years .1039 8.31
  15 or more years .1231 9.85
Exempt or management Less than 10 years .1039 8.31
  10 years or more .1231 9.85

Using PTO
In order to ensure adequate staffing levels in your department, it is important that you coordinate your PTO in advance with your supervisor. Paid Time Off hours do not count toward the calculation of overtime pay unless they were used for a Health Alliance-designated holiday on which you were scheduled to work. These holidays are:

If your department is typically closed on these holidays, you will use PTO for the day. If no PTO is available, your time off will be unpaid. If you work on a designated holiday you have the option of cashing in PTO hours up to the hours worked on the holiday.

Paid Time Off hours continuously accumulate until you reach the maximum for your position and years of service. Further accrual will be suspended until time is used. Unused PTO hours are paid out to you when you terminate your employment or when you transfer to a benefits ineligible status (as in the case of FTE <.5). Nonexempt associates forfeit all accrued PTO hours if employment is terminated or if they drop below a .5 FTE before completing 91 days of benefit eligible employment.

Cash-In Provision
The Health Alliance gives you the option of cashing in unused PTO hours each July and December, according to the following schedule:

If you have this many years of service... You can cash in up to:

At least 1 years but less than 5 years		 2 PTO days*
At least 5 years but less than 10 years 5 PTO days*
10 or more years 10 PTO days*

*Pro-rated for associates scheduled to work fewer than 80 hours a pay period.

Perfect Attendance Cash-In Provision
Hourly and exempt associates with perfect attendance from January through June may cash-in up to eight PTO hours during the month of July. Hourly and exempt associates with perfect attendance from July through December may cash-in up to eight PTO hours during the month of January.

Tax Deduction for PTO Cash-In:
The IRS requires that PTO Cash-In, as a non-periodic payment, be taxed at an IRS determined flat percentage rate for federal withholding tax. The current rate is 28% and is subject to change by the IRS. PTO Cash-In is also subject to all other required taxes such as state, city and FICA. The total tax amount withheld will vary by individual and may exceed 40% of the total amount paid.

Cost of Coverage
The Health Alliance pays the cost of PTO benefits. You pay nothing.