Time off requests

Whether you are navigating life on or off the road, managing your calendar shouldn't be a hassle. The Employee Experience team wants to ensure you have the flexibility you need while keeping our operations running smoothly.

Using the Request Time Off tool in your Driver Portal gives you control over your calendar. Here is how to navigate planned time away, last-minute emergencies, and holiday availability.

Planned Time Off vs. Emergency Absences

To ensure your schedule works for you, it helps to understand the difference between a planned request and emergency absences.

Planned Time Off Requests If you want to secure specific days off so the system bypasses you during regular scheduling, you must submit a formal request.

• Plan Ahead: Requests must be submitted at least 1 week in advance, but 2 weeks is a safer bet.
• The Cutoff: You cannot request time off once a schedule has already been published or for shifts that have already been assigned to you.

What to Do in an Emergency Life happens, and unexpected situations come up. Time off requests are not meant for last-minute emergencies or missing a scheduled shift.

• Take Action: If an emergency prevents you from working an assigned shift, you must drop the shift immediately in the portal.
• Sick Time Option: When dropping a shift for an emergency, using your accrued sick time is completely optional. If you do choose to use your accrued sick time during the drop process, it automatically bypasses the need to submit any documentation and attendance points would not apply.
• Documentation: If you choose not to use sick time, attendance points would still apply but providing proper documentation in alignment with our attendance policy can call for the removal of any associated points.
• Communication is Everything: Policies are always enforced equally, so please make Alto aware of any extenuating circumstances. The EE team is here to support you, provide the right resources, and review eligible attendance points for removal.

Long-Term Leaves & Job Abandonment Rules

Please note that submitting a standard time off request does not replace our Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) or unpaid leave policies.

Our standard job abandonment rules still apply to all active drivers. To maintain active status, you are required to work at least 4 hours within any 30-day period.

• If you need an extended period away from work that prevents you from hitting this minimum, you must formally request FMLA or an unpaid leave of absence.
• Taking this step prevents you from being flagged for job abandonment. For more information on how to navigate this, please review our Leave of Absences policy guide.

Step-by-Step: How to Submit a Time Off Request

Follow these steps in your portal to log your planned time away:

1. Log into the Driver Portal and open the navigation menu from the top-left corner. Select Request Time Off from the main menu.
2. Click the + Temporary Availability Request button.
3. Input your desired Start Date/Time and End Date/Time.
4. Open the Select Reason dropdown menu and choose how you would like this time to be applied:
   • Use my accrued Sick Time: Select this if you have a balance in Paycor you wish to use.
   • Request time off (unpaid): Select this if you simply need the days blocked off without pay.
5. Click Submit For Approval to send your request. You can track, review, or delete your pending requests right from your main summary table.

Working on Days You Are Normally Off (Holiday Availability)

Did you know you can also use this exact menu to tell us when you want to work an extra day? If there is a high-demand date or holiday coming up on a day you don't normally have regular weekly availability for, you can volunteer to be scheduled.

Example: If New Year’s Eve falls on a Tuesday and you normally mark yourself as unavailable on Tuesdays, you can use this feature to let us know you'd love to pick up a shift from 6:00 PM to 12:00 AM on New Year's Eve.

How to mark yourself available for a special day:

1. Go to the Request Time Off menu and click + Temporary Availability Request.
2. Fill out the specific dates and times you want to work.
3. In the Select Reason dropdown, choose "Mark as available (request to be scheduled)".
4. Hit submit, and we will do our best to get you into the rotation for that day!

Important Note: This tool is designed strictly for single, specific dates like holidays. It should not be used to submit temporary availability for multiple scattered dates across a normal week. If you need to make temporary, multi-day adjustments to your regular hours within a single week, please review our guide on Temporary Availability instead.