Human Resource Blog

Vacation pay

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	Termination
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I left a job at a doctor’s office in Georgia after two years and the employer is refusing to pay my vacation time. Is this legal on his part?

There is no state or federal law that requires employers to pay earned vacation upon termination in Georgia. A dozen or more states do have such a requirement, but Georgia isn’t one of them.

Whether or not a Georgia company pays terminated employees for vacation time is a matter of company policy. Often, this policy is spelled out in an employee handbook. At other times the policy is unwritten. Some companies pay vacation time only to workers who give 2 weeks notice. Others do not pay vacation upon termination under any circumstances.

If the employer has paid terminated workers for vacation time in the past, it usually should continue to do so under similar circumstances, to avoid charges of illegal discrimination. Suppose Dr. Green pays Suzie for earned vacation time when she resigns. Two years later, Ted resigns and Dr. Green does not pay him for earned vacation time. Ted probably has basis for a complaint of illegal discrimination based on sex, which would be filed with the EEOC.

The Georgia Department of Labor doesn’t have a wage enforcement arm. Instead, workers seeking vacation pay or final paychecks must usually file a claim for wages against the employer in the county small claims court, also called Magistrate Court. There is a filing fee, but the worker can add that amount to the wages owed, if the court rules in the worker’s favor.