Rockdale County board approves director PTO accrual change and schedules accrual and payout updates for 2026

The Rockdale County Board of Commissioners on a voice vote approved a multi-part amendment to the county’s paid time off (PTO) policy, changing director-level service credit, establishing an additional accrual tier for employees and revising the payout schedule for hires on or after Jan. 1, 2026.

Director Tony Holmes presented the proposed amendments, noting the package includes (1) changing directors’ PTO service credit from five years to one year; (2) adding one additional PTO hour per pay period for each tenure tier (equaling 26 hours annually) for all employees with a proposed effective date of Jan. 1, 2026; and (3) a revised payout schedule for employees hired on or after Jan. 1, 2026 (0% for under one year; 50% for one–five years; 75% for five–ten years; 100% for 10+ years). Holmes said the immediate director-level change was recommended so it would not adversely affect existing employees.

Public commenter Corliss Turner urged caution, telling the board, “The pandemic, American Rescue Plan was not for recurring expenses,” and asked officials to confirm legal and budgetary treatment before embedding recurring benefits into the operating budget.

Commissioner Williams said the accrual changes were intended in part to replace COVID-era sick days and to reduce the incentive for employees to come to work sick: “We don't want people coming to work sick.” Chair (name not stated in the record) raised budget concerns and noted staff and commissioners would continue to evaluate fiscal impacts as the county finalizes the 2026 budget.

The board voted to approve the director service-credit change effective immediately. It later approved the additional accrual provision for all employees with a proposed effective date of Jan. 1, 2026, and approved the revised PTO payout schedule for new hires effective Jan. 1, 2026. Votes were taken by voice; no roll-call tallies were recorded in the minutes.

The policy referenced by staff was identified in the discussion as Policy 2006-4-8 (PTO). Directors and staff said employees hired before Jan. 1, 2026, will remain under the existing payout provisions. The board’s action on the director accrual was recorded as effective immediately to avoid disadvantaging current staff, per the presentation.

What’s next: staff will implement the approved changes and apply the revised payout schedule to hires on or after Jan. 1, 2026. Commissioners asked staff to continue analyzing the budget impact and to return with any clarifications needed during the budget process for 2026.