Unlimited leave is one of the those things that sounds great on the surface, but in practice not so much.
First of all, it's literally not unlimited and effectively boils down what you would've normally had anyway. But because of the murkiness and psychology involved it often results in people taking less time off than if they simply had N days of allocated vacation. It also means that if you quit or get laid off, the time you didn't take is worth $0. Additionally, as was alluded to, I've seen it breed resentment when people are seen as taking too much vacation.
The company has a big upside though, as they have less liability on the books.
Required minimum would help, but that's very rare.
I worked at a well-known company with an unlimited vacation policy. Perhaps people did end up taking fewer overall holidays, but I would say the cognitive relief was worth it. If I needed a day off here and there, for any reason -- I knew I wouldn't have to stress about it.
I've worked at a small, mid-sized and large company, and unlimited time off worked the same at all three places.
Unless it is an emergency, communicate early and often, and it is not a problem. That way, you and everyone who depends on you knows what to expect (or not) and when to expect it (or not).
The best part about it is not worrying over small details, like if I take my time off in the summer and fall, will I run out of PTO before flu season hits this winter?
Yes, it is unfortunate that you dont have anything to cash out once you quit, and you might worry about taking too much off. As to the first, oh well, take the time off. As to the second, if you can't have an honest and fair conversation with you boss about your concerns regarding time off, you aren't going to have honest or fair conversations about a lot of really important work matters that process and time-tracking and firm clear cut rules won't fix.
Expect to be treated like an adult, act like an adult, and if you aren't treated like one, take advantage of the good market now and find a better job. That advice applies to a lot of maybe-maybe worries in the workplace for in-demand positions.
I absolutely hate unlimited time off. It turns it into a competition. If Jim managed to take 30 days this year and Joe only 15 effectively Jim got a free $15k to $30k bonus. There is all this pressure from both sides to use the least amount and to take the most.
All that disappears if you just give me a set number of days.
Unlimited PTO is definitely less time off than advertised, but these horror stories of race-to-the-bottom zero-time-off cultures are largely unfounded. I worked in SF for two years while at a series B startup and by the nature of the industry and my role, got to know many people at different startups.
I took something like, 3 work weeks off per year; most people took a bit more than I did, with a few taking 6+ weeks off in a year. The guy who took the least vacation, that our manager had to remind to take time off, probably took around 1.5-2 weeks off.
I, for one, took about five weeks off when working for a company with unlimited PTO.
It took some preparation and coordination, understanding my reasons (I had to settle some business overseas), but it was granted and paid for, and I was welcome to come back to work.
First of all, it's literally not unlimited and effectively boils down what you would've normally had anyway. But because of the murkiness and psychology involved it often results in people taking less time off than if they simply had N days of allocated vacation. It also means that if you quit or get laid off, the time you didn't take is worth $0. Additionally, as was alluded to, I've seen it breed resentment when people are seen as taking too much vacation.
The company has a big upside though, as they have less liability on the books.
Required minimum would help, but that's very rare.