Nearly half of U.S. employees expect to have unused vacation days at the end of 2024 amid preparations for the upcoming holiday season, according to a survey conducted by Ipsos and published by Eagle Hill Consulting Nov. 21.
Moreover, 85% of the 1,387 respondents said they would support employers instituting policies that require workers to use a minimum amount of vacation days per year. More than one-third said they had not taken a vacation at all in the past year.
Melissa Jezior, president and CEO at Eagle Hill Consulting, said the survey results contain “mixed messages” on what workers want from their employers’ time-off policies. She noted that 37% of employees said they wanted an unlimited vacation policy despite the finding that many had not used all of their allotted time.
“Perhaps what we are seeing is employees feel they cannot take time off either for workload or workplace culture reasons, and they want to be compelled to take time away from work,” Jezior said in a press release accompanying the survey data.
The findings echo other research on the subject. Last April, a Harris Poll survey found that 3 in 4 U.S. workers had not used the maximum amount of paid time off permitted by their employers, with respondents citing the pressure to be available and responsive as well as heavy workloads as top reasons for not taking more time off. Most of those who did take time off said they struggled to fully disconnect from work, signaling a connection to the broader issue of quiet vacationing.
Expense of travel, workload are contributing factors
The Ipsos/Eagle Hill Consulting survey found that the expense of taking vacation was the most commonly cited reason for not doing so, followed by 28% who cited self-imposed pressures. Other reasons included heavy workloads, a lack of paid time off, a lack of colleagues available to provide coverage, managerial pressure and organizational culture.
Cost pressures may not be altogether unexpected in a high-inflation environment. A recent Deloitte report found that concerns about high prices kept would-be summer vacationers home in 2024, with the average traveler planning to take 2.3 trips during that season compared to 3.1 trips in 2023. More than one-third of non-travelers in the Deloitte report said travel was “just too expensive right now.”
But employers can take steps to alleviate other barriers to time off, especially given that employees requested PTO at a historically high clip in January 2024, according to a BambooHR report. That includes having leaders set an example by scheduling time off for themselves and encouraging their reports to do the same.
“Establishing a culture that fosters taking time away to recharge can be highly beneficial to employers in terms of lowering burnout level, improving employee engagement, and fostering employee wellness," Jezior said.
Minimum time off as a potential framework
Ipsos and Eagle Hill Consulting’s data showed that the majority of employees would support a minimum vacation policy, and this could serve as a model for employers to consider moving forward.
In a 2021 op-ed to HR Dive, Suzy Walther, chief people officer at financial software company Carta, wrote that the company’s policy mandating that employees take at least 15 vacation days per year boosted their creativity on the job and their resilience to workplace stress. Walther said that Carta took steps to structure teams so as to balance workloads before and after leave.
“In the end, we have more satisfied employees, more innovative workplaces and more appeal for top talent,” Walther wrote. “And all that means we have greater potential for growth — and a stronger bottom line.”
