The End of the Year (Vacation)

“Vacation is what you take when you can’t take what you’ve been taking any longer”

Author Unknown

Most of the executives I coach are pretty stretched individuals. Now and then I get a few who tell me they really “thrive” on stress and don’t really need a vacation or a break from work. These are the same executives who tell me they function well on little sleep.  These are the same “Type A” executives who tend to “give stress” to others.

It seems we are all be asked to work more with less resources in this globally competitive world of ours. Getting away ain’t what it used to be.

Current research shows about 90 percent of U.S. employers offer vacation. Typically in the US employees receive about nine days of paid vacation and six paid holidays, a total of 15 days off per year. Approximately 28 million Americans don’t get any paid vacation or paid holidays. Entrepreneurs and small business owners have heard of the concept of vacations or have watched others experience this personally.

As they say, you really can’t take it with you….unless you travel like I do and see business and family travelers try to stuff oversized bags into airline compartments not made to handle them–much to the annoyance of all of us. Being stretched at work also seems to spill over to stress at home, at least from some new research that is accumulating.

Results of a new study from the University of Maryland confirm what working parents already know — the expanded work week is undermining family life. In a study of over 500 employees in a Fortune 500 company, researchers concluded that long hours at work significantly increase work-family conflict and that this conflict is associated with increases stress and depression (regardless of how flexible an employee’s schedule was or how much help they had at home for child care).

In case anyone hasn’t noticed, some major career paradigm shifts continue to influence the value struggle between employers’ needs and employees’ wants. Job security has been replaced by employability security, organizational loyalty has been replaced by job/task loyalty, and linear career paths have been replaced by alternative career paths. It is no coincidence that when reviewing characteristics of the “Best Companies” in America, we find a shift to those that are indeed “family friendly.”

Vacation Factoids:

• In a 2002 poll by Reston, Virginia based TrueCareers, more than 70% of workers do not think there is a healthy balance between work and their personal lives. More than 50% of the 1,626 respondents reported they are exploring new career opportunities because of the inability to manage both work and family stressors.
• In a comparative survey by Atlanta-based staffing firm Randstad North America, in the year 2000, 54% rated family the most important priority compared to almost 70% in 2002.
• For working professional women it is not unusual stop out of work (“off ramping) to care for children, parents or other family demands. In fact, in a recent study by Sylvia Ann Hewlett and Carolyn Buck Luce published in Harvard Business Review on differences in “off ramping” found that 44% women reported leaving the “fast lane” for “family time” compared with only 12% of men.
• According to a Family and Work Institute study conducted in 2000, over 16% of employees bring work home at least once a week—up from 6% in 1977.
• According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average American man today works 100 more hours a year than he did in the 1970s with women working 200 more hours (Cornell University economist Robert Frank) The average woman works 200 more hours.
• The typical American sleeps one to two hours less a night than his or her parents did (two hours or more less sleep than you need significantly effects memory, decision making, mood and psychomotor skills.
• Men are still more likely than women in US companies to work more than 40 hours per week. However, men are more likely than women to not take allotted vacation time. On average, Americans leave at least four days unclaimed annually.
• What makes these work/family issues more striking is that working hours in other countries are flat or even declining. For example, France recently enacted a 35-hour work week and mandatory vacations for all employees. The standard work week in Belgium and Norway is Monday through Friday, 37.5 hours, and cannot exceed 40 hours. The French also are provided 30 days of vacation time, unlimited sick days and full child care.
• According to the International Labor Organization, as of 2000, Americans are working more hours than the Japanese (1,966 hours per year compared to 1,889) and to every European country surveyed.

Keep in mind that in the old days, vacation was often considered a luxury, but in today’s world it seems like it has become a necessity….Hope you have a relaxful end of the year vacation if you can fit it in….Be well….

[tags] vacation, holidays, work hours, work/life balance, stress, burnout, work hours, sleep, fatigue, Ken Nowack, Envisia, Envisia Learning, Kenneth Nowack [/tags]

Ken Nowack

Kenneth Nowack, Ph.D. is a licensed psychologist (PSY13758) and President & Chief Research Officer/Co-Founder of Envisia Learning, is a member of the Consortium for Research on Emotional Intelligence in Organizations. Ken also serves as the Associate Editor of Consulting Psychology Journal: Practice and Research. His recent book Clueless: Coaching People Who Just Don’t Get It is available for free for a limited time by signing up for free blog updates (Learn more at our website)