North Carolina: unused vacation when employment ends

Earned vacation must be paid unless the employer has a written forfeiture clause and gave written notice of it. No notice means no forfeiture.

Each answer traces to the lines quoted below.

What the source says

• Earned vacation pay, commissions and bonuses cannot be forfeited unless the employer has a written forfeiture clause in its vacation, commission or bonus policy or termination policy, pursuant to N.C.G.S. 95-25.13(2).
• The employer must make its promised-wage practices and policies available to employees in writing or through a posted notice kept in a place accessible to employees.
• An employee who was not notified in writing of a policy that causes loss or forfeiture of vacation time or pay is not subject to that loss or forfeiture.
• A reduction in promised wages, including earned wage benefits, cannot be made retroactive — any reduction must be prospective from the date of notification.
• Vacation has to be earned before the employer owes anything, whether it was promised verbally or by written policy.
• An employee whose employment ends for any reason must be paid all wages due on or before the next regular payday, through regular pay channels or by mail if the employee asks in writing.

Sources

What 80 hours a year looks like on a biweekly schedule

The bar below is not specific to North Carolina law — it shows the mechanic every schedule shares. Eighty hours a year across 26 paychecks is 3.08 hours a period. With no ceiling the balance climbs for the whole year.

Closing balance after a year: 80.08 hours.

Does North Carolina require my employer to pay out unused vacation?

Earned vacation must be paid unless the employer has a written forfeiture clause and gave written notice of it. No notice means no forfeiture.

Can a policy in North Carolina erase vacation I already earned?

On use-it-or-lose-it, the source read for this page puts North Carolina at: Allowed with conditions. The quoted lines on this page are the basis for that, and anything the source did not settle is listed as not established.

Where did these lines come from?

From Promised Wages Including Wage Benefits — N.C. Department of Labor; Payment of Final Wages to Separated Employees — N.C. Department of Labor. Each one was opened and read rather than summarised from another site, and the links are on this page.

Is this legal advice?

No. This page quotes public sources so you can read them yourself. It is not legal advice and it does not replace your employer’s written policy or a lawyer in your jurisdiction.