As the world is finally emerging from the shadows of the pandemic, an even more disturbing trend has taken hold of the workforce. Today, two in five employees—39%—are taking less annual leave than they were prior to 2020. This disturbing trend has far-reaching impacts on mental well-being and workplace productivity. In the United Kingdom, workers have a statutory right to an average of 30 days of paid annual leave per year. Alarmingly, last year, just 35% of them utilized their entire allocation. These limits on time away from work contribute to fears of burnout and destruction of life outside of work.
Recent national and state surveys illustrate the negative impact caused by a lack of leave. A staggering 81% of workers agree that not having a day off for months results in burnout, exhaustion, and poor mental health. The expectation to be always-on for work can be an intimidating barrier to keep employees from taking the breaks they need. Shockingly, 57% of workers straight up confess to avoiding taking their annual leave. They worry that it will tarnish the way other people think about their productivity or dedication.
And the need for time off isn’t just an employee benefit, it resonates in real, concrete employer benefits. In fact, a study found that utilizing the maximum amount of earned annual leave can increase annual productivity by as much as 40%. Moreover, workers who use all their earned paid time off lower their chance of needing short-term disability by 28%. The fear of disconnecting from work still lingers.
Approaches that allow taking leave in larger blocks for those who want it can enable deeper, more restorative unwinding. One employee pointed out, “Is the issue that they want to take all their time off in one big lump, so they can properly unwind?” This is a world away from the U.S. experience. Last year, 765 million days of paid annual leave went unused—that’s because there continues to be no federal law guaranteeing workers any paid leave at all.
In large part, this reluctance stems from the challenges of today’s labour landscape. As one observer noted, “So it must be that the labour market is such a hellish treadmill of unending brutality that people don’t even feel safe taking their legally allocated days off.” An insidious culture of overwork pervades many industries. Because of this pressure, workers are scared that taking time off could put their standing with the company at risk.
Employers need to do their best to address these trends. When employees fully utilize their earned annual leave, they win, and subsequently, organizations do too. “So the message is that annual leave is good for everyone?” one expert remarked, emphasizing the mutual advantages.