On Monday, Galveston County commissioners will discuss a new paid time off policy. It's an item that quickly caught Debbie Diaz's attention.
"It made me really upset," Diaz recalled. "As many people here, I've devoted most of my adult life serving the county and working, and it's kind of like a slap in the face for me."
Diaz works in the justice center. She first started for the county in 1993.
Since then, she said she's banked nearly a thousand vacation and sick hours. Time that the current policy said will get paid out upon retirement.
However, a time-off policy proposal presented to commissioners stated that there will be no payouts for retirees under any circumstances.
"I was not happy," Diaz said. "I was a little nervous because I'm getting older and this was something I was planning on to be able to retire, and I don't know if I'm going to be able to do that."
It's not just employees eyeing retirement that could be impacted.
On Friday, ABC13 met with around 10 county employees who are anxious about a potential policy change that would affect how many vacation and sick days they receive.
Not only would they get fewer days, but they also couldn't roll over unused vacation time into the new year.
"This is my job, and this is something they gave me, and now they're ready to take it away," county employee Errol Jones said. "They're just going to try and take it away without telling any of us."
Since Wednesday, we've asked commissioners about why they're considering this. On Friday, Commissioner Hank Dugie told ABC13 the current policy is complicated, with employees falling under different categories.
He says they want something universal, while still rewarding long-time workers. Dugie said the item is just a discussion, and no decision has been made.
Diaz isn't so sure. She sent a letter to commissioners with more than 200 signatures.
"It just bothers me," Diaz explained. "I know for myself personally the amount of time, extra time that I've put in and how I've devoted to my job, and it makes me sad."
Commissioners meet on Monday at 9:30 a.m. The item is at the end of the agenda. Commissioners said they plan to discuss it during a workshop.