One in Four Workers Plan to Work While on Vacation, CareerBuilder.com’s Annual Survey Reveals
Even if the start of summer vacation is approaching, there are still some workers that won’t be leaving the office. A certain percentage, 25 percent to be exact, of the working population will stay in contact with work during vacation. The statistics went up from 20 percent in 2007. Close to one in ten (9 percent) have unique situation as they are expected by their bosses to still work or at least check their voicemail/e-mail while on vacation. CareerBuilder.com annually conducts a vacation survey for workers and this is what they have come up with for this year. In 2007, there are 15 percent of workers that gave up vacation days simply because they didn’t have time to use them and only nine percent gave up four or more days.
As for industries comparison, 50 percent of sales workers of the lead industries showed that they will check in while on vacation, what followed is a 37 percent of both financial services workers and IT workers.
Employers’ expectations play a role in worker decisions to stay connected while on vacation. Nearly one in five IT workers (19 percent) said working, checking voicemail and/or e-mail while on vacation is required by their employers, compared to 17 percent of sales workers, 14 percent of workers in the financial industry and 12 percent of those in professional and business services.
Seven percent workers said they have lied to their employers, claiming they couldn’t be reached on vacation. They did this because the stress that drives to the people is just too much to handle.
Rosemary Haefner, vice president of Human Resources at CareerBuilder.com said, “taking a vacation is a great way for workers to re-energize themselves and bring fresh ideas back to the table.” But she also added, “unfortunately for some workers, getting away can add unnecessary stress to their lives. Twelve percent of workers said they feel guilty when they are on vacation, and 6 percent felt that it could lead to them losing their jobs. If you prepare
to be away in advance, your organizational skills may impress your leadership team and allow you to take a truly work- free vacation.”
Workers plan to spend their vacations in a variety of ways, including:
— Traveling (36 percent)
— Visiting family and friends (24 percent)
— Resting (20 Percent)
— Catching up on housework (8 percent)
— Running errands (3 percent)
When planning a vacation, Haefner recommends the following tips to make your time off a true break from the office:
1. Prepare. Prepare. Prepare.
IF you are planning to be out, let everybody know in your team about it. A journal which you can share with a co-worker is also going to be helpful for emergency situations. The journal should have important information such as project contact information, any emergency passwords, etc.
2. Think Big.
IF planning for a long vacation, but at the same time, a big project is expected, leave as much room between the two events. Big projects can take much time and it problems may occur along the way. If this happens, additional days might get consumed for this purpose. Make sure you have a big allowance in between.
3. Stick to a plan.
In most cases you are going to be away with other people on vacation. Provide a time in a day for pure work, when you can check emails and concentrate on what needs to be updated. It doesn’t have to be a long session. Short sessions everyday will do. Doing this will not interfere with any of your activities with friends and families and will also allow you to do what needs to be done accordingly.
4. Teach by example.
Set an example for your workers, if you are the boss. Let them feel how important it is to enjoy work when you are away for vacation. That way, they will also feel much better when it is their turn to to go on vacation.
Survey Methodology
This survey was conducted online within the U.S. by Harris Interactive on behalf of CareerBuilder.com among 6,987 U.S. employees (employed full-time; not self-employed) ages 18 and over between February 11, and March 13, 2008, respectively. With a pure probability sample of 6,987 one could say with a 95 percent probability that the overall results have a sampling error of +/- 1.2 percentage points. Sampling error for data from
sub-samples is higher and varies.
About CareerBuilder.com
CareerBuilder.com is the nation’s largest online job site with more than 23 million unique visitors and over 1.6 million jobs. Owned by Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE: GCI), Tribune Company, The McClatchy Company (NYSE: MNI) and Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq: MSFT), the company offers a vast online and print network to help job seekers connect with employers. CareerBuilder.com
powers the career centers for more than 1,600 partners, including 140 newspapers and leading portals such as America Online and MSN. More than 300,000 employers take advantage of CareerBuilder.com’s easy job postings, 26 million-plus resumes, Diversity Channel and more. CareerBuilder.com and its subsidiaries operate in the U.S., Europe, Canada and Asia. For more
information, visit http://www.careerbuilder.com.
Media Contact:
Michael Erwin
773-527-3637
Michael.Erwin@CareerBuilder.com
