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Tina Hamilton, PHR
May 14, 2026
This article, written by myHR Partner President & CEO Tina Hamilton, originally appeared in a column for the Morning Call. Read the full column here.
Not long ago, paid time off was treated as sacred. Vacation days, parental leave, mental health days, these weren't "perks." They were acknowledgements that people are human, not machines.
That's starting to change.
Across the country, we're seeing even high-profile employers quietly rolling back paid time off and related benefits. The company Zoom recently reduced paid parental leave. Deloitte has announced cuts to PTO, pensions, and even IVF benefits for certain employees starting next year. These aren't struggling startups. They're well-capitalized organizations making a deliberate choice: trim benefits to control costs.
And while these decisions may look far away from the Lehigh Valley, they're not. National trends always find their way into local practices, especially when economic pressure mounts.
Employers will tell you these decisions are about productivity and sustainability. And to be fair, may businesses are navigating rising costs, margin pressure, and uncertainty. Layoffs feel drastic. Cutting benefits feels quieter.
Several forces are converging:
The labor market has cooled: Quit rates are down. Hiring has slowed. Employees have fewer options than they did two years ago, which reduces leverage around benefits.
Cost-cutting without layoffs: Reducing PTO doesn't trigger headlines or severance packages, yet it delivers immediate savings, especially when unused time is wiped off the books.
A stronger performance lens: With AI-driven productivity tracking and relentless focus on output, time away can be perceived, fairly or not, as risk.
Once PTO becomes framed as optional or indulgent, its value erodes quickly.
Here's the quiet part.
Many employees have PTO. They just don't use it.
National surveys show that more than 17% of employees worry that taking time off could put them at risk during layoffs or negatively affect performance reviews. Younger employees and hybrid workers are often the most hesitant, as they feel they're still proving themselves.
Pennsylvania workers consistently rank among those who leave the most vacation time unused by the end of the year. I see this firsthand when we review benefits usage data. People are carrying weeks of earned time they never touch.
This should be given some thought.
When people stop taking time off, it's rarely because they don't need it. It's because they don't feel safe using it or they are too busy at work to take it.
The Lehigh Valley economy is strong, but it is also demanding.
We're dominated by healthcare, manufacturing, transportation, warehousing, and professional services. These are high-output sectors with real physical and mental strain. Our region has roughly 350,000 working adults, many commuting, many balancing caregiving, and many working in roles where "unplugging" feels impossible.
Our unemployment rate remains relatively low, hovering in the mid-4% range. On paper, that looks healthy. In practice, it creates pressure: fewer workers doing more work.
If PTO continues to shrink or becomes culturally discouraged, the cost shows up elsewhere: burnout, absenteeism, turnover, and ultimately lower performance.
This is especially risky for Lehigh Valley businesses competing against New York, New Jersey, and Philadelphia employers who may still be investing heavily in flexibility and well-being.
I'll say this plainly: Cutting PTO may help short-term numbers, but it will also hurt long-term results.
When employees don't rest:
The morale declines
Errors increase
Engagement drops
Turnover quietly accelerates
And replacing employees is expensive. In our region, talent is skilled, but not unlimited, especially in healthcare, leadership roles, specialized blue-collar roles, etc.
There's also cultural risk. When leaders don't take time off, or worse, reward those who never do, employees learn the rules quickly. "Unlimited PTO" that no one touches is not a benefit. It's a liability.
While much of this responsibility sits with leadership, employees aren't powerless.
Here are practical steps that reduce risk while protecting well-being:
Using earned time off is not a lack of commitment. Chronic exhaustion is.
I've run companies through multiple economic cycles. I understand the pressure to protect margins and avoid layoffs. But benefits decisions send signals, whether you intend to or not.
When PTO shrinks or becomes taboo, people don't work harder. They just work more tired. In a region like the Lehigh Valley, where people are proud, capable, and deeply committed, that's a dangerous trade-off.
Rest is not the opposite of productivity. It's what makes productivity sustainable.
And the companies that remember that will be the ones still standing when the cycle turns again.
Tina Hamilton, Founder and CEO of myHR Partner, is an entrepreneur with over 30 years of experience in the HR industry. A passionate advocate for workplace improvement, Tina is a nationwide speaker and published columnist. She has served on numerous boards including the Entrepreneurs' Organization (EO), where she hosts a podcast sharing insights with fellow business leaders.