Most people would agree that hard work, dedication and motivation are important elements that factor into being a success in corporate America. But what about vacation time? Is taking time off just as important when it comes to building successful careers? Some people think so, and believe that Americans have gone too far when it comes to putting in the time at the office, leading to a firestorm of negative consequences.
According to an Expedia.com survey, 63 percent of Americans work more than 40 hours per week and hand back more than $21 billion dollars in unused vacation days each year. The survey found that Americans took less vacation time this year than last, and feel guilty about taking time off. Joe Robinson, author of Work to Live: The Guide to Getting a Life and founder of the Work to Live movement, monitors this phenomenon and is working hard to change the tide. According to the movement’s Web site (www.worktolive.info), Americans put in two to three times more months in total hours on the job each year than Europeans and two and a half weeks more than the Japanese. There are other troubling facts listed on the site. For example, the average middle income family now works four months more in total hours than they did in 1979 (according to economists Barry Bluestone and Stephen Rose) and 26 percent of Americans take no vacation at all (Boston College survey).
What many people might not know is that America is the only industrialized nation that has no minimum paid leave law. Robinson is leading the Work to Live Vacation Campaign, to push for nationwide change. The organization’s proposal calls for a mandatory three weeks of vacation for anyone who has worked at a job for a year, increasing to four weeks after three years. While this amount of time will sound excessive to some Americans, several weeks of vacation is standard in the rest of the world. In Australia, employers are required to provide 20 days off per year. France requires a minimum of 25 days, Germany mandates 24 days and the United Kingdom requires 20 days. Even China requires a minimum vacation time of 15 days.
"In America, people struggle and are faced with a lot of guilt when it comes to taking vacation time because vacations are not legitimate in this country," says Robinson. "Because there is no law that regulates vacation time, American workers feel like they have to beg for time off."
So why do we have such a hard time taking our vacations and what are the consequences of this "overwork culture," as Robinson puts it? "We have been programmed to be workaholics," says Robinson. "For many people, their identity is 100 percent what they do for a living - it’s their job title. People mistake their identity for their jobs." He says this mistaken identity is causing major problems in our country, both for individuals and for businesses.
Not taking vacation time leads to a series of health hazards, including higher stress, burnout, sleeplessness, heart disease and more. Working too much can also negatively affect your relationships with family and friends. From a business perspective, there are many benefits of giving employees time off.
"Employees’ performance actually goes up after taking vacation and after breaks," says Robinson. “Several companies in my book found that when they increased the vacation time they offered to employees, the overall business productivity increased and company morale soared." Expedia.com’s survey found similar results. Eighty-four percent of survey respondents reported feeling rejuvenated and reconnected with family and friends after a vacation, and 80 percent reported having a more positive outlook about their jobs when they take time away.
It’s clear that taking time off is important. But what can you do if your company has a culture that does not support time off? Robinson says you have to put your foot down. "You have to set boundaries, just like in any relationship," he says. "If you don’t, you will get walked on." He suggests using the "what’s in it for them," strategy when asking for time off or negotiating for more vacation time. “You can prove that your productivity will go up after taking a break," he says.
If your supervisor still won’t give in and give you more paid vacation time, Robinson suggests asking to take unpaid leave, which is usually doable. He believes that taking vacation is important enough to warrant taking such a measure. "Leisure time is important. It’s exploring all that life has to offer, and it is during our leisure time that we really learn and grow,” he says. “You can be productive and have a life," he says. There's no better time than now to make a commitment to getting reconnected with your life - you and your employer will reap the benefits!
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