I worked for a company that allowed employees to record the exact number of hours they worked and then the employees were allowed to use this time when they needed time off for exams, family situations or other special needs. After having spent 8.5 years at night taking my 15 CGA courses on top of working fulltime to successfully achieve my CGA designation, I can truly relate to the need to help an employee out in preparation for exams. In the long run, the effort the employee is making to improve themselves will pay off for the employer. Just think about the employee working fulltime, doing the courses at night and also being supportive to their family. Maybe one option is to allow the employee to take off a set number of days to prepare for the exam and then have them make-up the time later by adding a 1/2 hour a day to their schedule. Flexibility and support is key to a successful employer

If an employee is scheduled during working hours to take an exam we will pay for those hours as staff development. Or in some cases if they have to go to Vancouver or out of town to take the exam in person we will also pay for that day as a staff development day.

If the work is relevant to their role, our organization allows for some paid time off for study purposes, as long as it is approved previously. There is also some reimbursement for school costs available.

We cover the costs of training if it is related to their work. The employees use their banked hours or vacation to write down the exam.

If the cost of training is job-related, then prior approval is required. Once approval is received, some or all costs are reimbursed to the employee. This can also include time off for the writing of exams or sometimes even 1/2 days for study time prior to the exams.

My company was very generous in granting paid time off to study for payroll exams and also paid time off to take the exams. They also reimbursed me for tuition costs and annual membership costs.

I worked for a company that allowed 1 day off for final exams and one day off for studying for the final exams, for bigger exams more time off was considered. I had an employee who was taking a 3 day exam, they requested 2 weeks prep and the 3 days off which was accepted. These days off had to be submitted prior to taking them off. It didn’t matter what the course was for, we considered any education to be for the betterment of the employee and therefore for the betterment of the company.
The same company would pay for any non job related post secondary courses at 80% of cost as long as the employee received 80% as their final grade, half of the money was given to the employee upon registration and the other half after completion- if the final grade was below 80% they did not receive the second payment. Additionally if the employee took a course related to their job we paid 100% if the employee passed with a grade higher than 80% and if the employee passed with a lower grade we paid 80%. Again all courses had to be submitted prior to registration.

For CPA courses we give 1 study day and 1 exam day for each course. For the CFE we provide 4 study days as well as time for the exam. We expect our students to use at least 2 weeks of vacation before the exam and offer unpaid leave as well.

We have an education policy that includes covering the cost of specific courses related to the employee’s position and paid time off for studying and exam taking purposes. I think all businesses need to support the continued development of their employee’s and set the up for success.

For professional development we cover all costs for the course and materials , exams etc. . We also have a $1500 annual personal development fund for employees to take whatever courses or classes they like . They don’t have to be related to their job . We have had people take cooking courses , dance classes , golf lessons etc . the employee gets approval up front , then takes their course or class , provides proof they completed it and are then reimbursed . We encourage our staff to learn something new .. you never know if that class may be of use some day in their every day job or another position in the company they are interested in .

We cover expenses for professional development, & have typically provided paid time as well for study or exams, as needed.

Wow – very impressive to see so many organizations offering various benefits!!

Yes as long as it is job related and for a betterment that help you on the job.

My company covers the training cost but the employee have to take the time off for his/her exams

We give the day to take an exam.
Leslie