Q: Our small company has our vacation policy in writing, but it seems general to me. One woman took a vacation and, despite the policy, was told she was not entitled to receive vacation pay. How do we know whether our employer is being fair or manipulating the policy to suit its own needs?

A: According to A. Bruce Clarke, attorney and CEO of Capital Associated Industries (an organization specializing in creating benefits policies): "Most state laws give employers wide latitude in making, publishing and changing policies. If properly written, an employee handbook is generally a statement of intent and does not create a binding promise on most issues. Employers are often free to change or adapt their policies. Some states require certain types of policies to be published to employees, such as posted notices. (A few states give employers much less discretion over content and methods, such as California and Michigan.)"

Clarke says each state has its own laws or regulations on how vacation time is accrued, paid, used and lost. No federal law covers this. Generally, employers can define whether there is vacation time, how it is earned, when an employee is entitled to it, when it will be paid, and how it may be lost or carried forward. Once employers make these decisions, most states treat practices similarly to how they treat laws.

Some states prevent employers from erasing accrued vacation time when employees leave. Employers with tightly defined vacation polices should prepare clear written policies. In large and small employers, there are other policy areas -- such as sick days, leaves of absence, attendance expectations, complaint procedures, holidays, handling bad weather and other recurring matters -- that call for written definitions.

Vacation policies typically control when vacations can be taken and paid out at termination. Failure to spell that out in writing gives employees more leverage at termination, whether they quit or are fired. An employer might state, "We do not pay out unused vacation unless we receive a two-week termination notice." The employee might respond by claiming this shouldn't apply because she was not allowed to take any of the time off that she requested during the past six months. A clear policy favors the employer. Ambiguity favors the employee.

If your employer has no written benefits policies, ask your manager in an e-mail so you will have a written response to your questions. Then ask other employees to confirm that practice. If a problem arises in receiving what you think is due, call your state's labor department for help after exhausting your own efforts.

Employers without written polices should consider the advantages of hiring professionals to create employee handbooks defining benefits policies. Employers with written rules should review them to ensure they meet the applicable state laws. For more information, go to www.capital.org.