One of the simplest HR issues that a company has to handle is managing leaves. Initially we did not have a fixed leave policy and leaves and holidays were granted on a need basis and on short notice. However as we grew we realized the need for systematizing this to be able to manage and plan our activities and projects. Creating a leave policy might sound easy but we had to put a lot of thought into this. We wanted it to be as flexible as possible but with enough rigidity to have a predictable system.
Company Leave Policy Document v1.0

• An employee will be entitled to 12 Holidays a year. 3 national holidays (Jan 26th, August 15th and Oct 2nd) and rest 9 days decided by the company.
• An Employee will be entitled to 12 working days Paid Leave in a calendar year.
• An employee shall not take Paid Leave for more than 3 days during a quarter during the first two years of employment.
• All leaves – unpaid and paid - needs prior approval from the employee's manager. Leave sanctioning authority has the full discretion to refuse, revoke or curtail the leave when required.
• All Employees are required to submit a leave application to his/her Manager at least 3 days before he/she intends to take leave except in the case of emergencies.
• In case of emergencies, the manager must be informed as early as possible. All leaves, other than emergencies, informed without sufficient notice will be considered as Un-Paid Leave and will be recorded as 'Absent without Notice'.
• Deviations with respect to availing leave can be permitted in case of exigency by the Manager.