Notifying Employees of change to 'Sick Leave' Policy

[justwonderin]

Hi. I wanted to know if, under MD law, a company had to notify it's employees (via meetings/posters/posted letters) of changes to its sick leave policy. A relative of mine is about to undergo surgery and she just found out that her company has changed it's sick leave policy - rather than having paid time off, she is now required to use her paid vacation time during her recovery period instead. The company held no meetings to let the employees know, nor were there any posters or letters put up. There apparently is a book that at her location that gives information on the company policy. It had been updated to reflect that change, but the employess had not been made aware that the book had been updated.

I guess my question is how publicised does a change in a policy like this have to be. Is an unannounced change in a book sufficient? Thanks

[cbg]

While this answer would not be true for all changes to policy, for the type of change you describe there is no requirement that the employees receive prior notification or that posters be hung. Vacation is not a benefit required by law, nor is it considered wages in Maryland. The employer gets to decide how and when it is used.