Although paid time off (PTO) is one of the benefits most likelyto be offered by companies — three-quarters of all American workersenjoy some amount of PTO — it doesn’t seem to get the same level ofattention that other benefits receive. It’s understandable that somuch time and energy is devoted to health care-related benefits,given their cost and importance, not to mention the political windsthat are swirling. It’s also understandable that there’s growinginterest in benefits like student loan debt reimbursement, and moreunique benefits like pet insurance.

But much of the news surrounding PTO these days generally has todo either with companies offering unlimited PTO, or with the factthat the United States lags behind other industrialnations when it comes to this key benefit. How can brokersencourage employers to help their staff achieve a better work-lifebalance?

In this corner: unlimited PTO

One misconception about unlimited PTO is that it is most commonin the startup community. In fact, while many of the companies thatoffer this benefit are technology companies, they’re not all smallstartups. Software maker VM Ware has thousands of employees. Virgin Atlantic is another large company that offers unlimited PTO.Interestingly, while this benefit has a high “cool factor” attachedto it, unlimited PTO gets a bad rap because many employees don’ttake enough advantage of it, and do not enjoy the benefitsof time away from work. In any case, unlimited PTO has not beenthat widely adopted. The Society for Human Resources has found thatsuch policies are in place at only 1 percent to 2 percent ofAmerican companies.

On the other hand: No vacationnation

At the other end of the spectrum, we often see information onhow low the U.S. stands with respect to other countries when itcomes to taking time off. Several years ago, the Center forEconomic and Policy Research, a D.C.-based think tank, looked at how the world’s most developed andwealthiest economies handle paid vacations and holidays. Inaddition to the U.S., the Center looked at 16 European nations,Australia, Canada, Japan, and New Zealand, and found the U.S. wasthe only country with no legal requirement for employers to offerpaid time off. As a result, roughly one-quarter of Americans get novacation.

How brokers can help

Most businesses, of course, fall somewhere on the continuumbetween zero PTO and unlimited. The role of the broker has changedfrom simply providing product offerings for employee benefits toassisting employers with their HR objectives — which includesavoiding employee burnout. If brokers have not looked at theirclients’ PTO policies in a while, it may be worth doing a review tosee if they could stand some tweaking or a complete overhaul.Here’s how brokers can help ensure their clients have a PTO policythat’s up-to-date and right for their business.

Find out whether a client’s employees are takingadvantage of their current allotment of vacation days. Asa gauge to determine whether or not a policy is working, check tosee how many PTO days a client’s employees are taking. After all,using up all their allotment may mean that employees want and needmore time off. And not using them up may indicate the client isunderstaffed, or that employees are stretching themselves too thin.

Know what the end-user wants. Employee surveyscan be tricky, as they can set an expectation that the results willimmediately be acted on, or that every individual’s personaldesires will be taken care of. But it is very useful tooccasionally take the pulse of your workforce to see how contentthey are with current policies and to determine what they wouldlike when it comes to benefits. They may not say they wantless time off, but there could be some interestingtrade-offs employees might be prepared to make. For instance, theymight prefer a policy that combined vacation days into ageneral-purpose bucket alongside sick days, even if it means havingno official sick days. Maybe having the day after Thanksgiving offis more important than another holiday the company observes. Anadditional floating holiday may trump all. Friday afternoonsoff in the summer may cost little if half of employees areregularly out the door by 2 p.m., and may pay real dividends interms of employee loyalty and productivity.

Assess how a PTO policy stacks up against thecompetition. One of the best ways to determine whether aPTO policy is a good one is to compare and contrast it to what isbeing offered by competitors. Ask new employees what their oldbenefits package included. During exit interviews, ask aboutwhether PTO at their new company played a role in their decision toleave. Compare notes with colleagues at other companies. Nationalsurveys are nice to have on hand, but understanding exactly what’sgoing on in the sector where clients are competing for talent is crucial.