NOTICE: Vacation is Canceled Next Year

Just kidding!

Sorry, we couldn’t resist a little Halloween prank.

The joke is on you, though, if you cancel your own vacation by not using vacation time. Living in one of the hardest working countries in the world has its advantages, but Americans leave 429 million paid vacation days on the table each year. 429 million!

WORK LESS, ACCOMPLISH MORE?

Did you know 40% of executives think employees would be more effective if they took more vacations? Our work-a-holism is usually not prescribed by senior management (at least not intentionally). More often, the whip-cracker is the worker himself, anxious about all the work that stacks up when he’s away.

The real prank would be if any U.S. employer were to say to their employees next spring, “Hey, have a great summer! What are you going to do with your 256 hours of paid vacation time this year?”

That would really stress Americans out. We wouldn’t know what to do with ourselves!

256 WHAT NOW??

Yet that’s the norm in Europe, where many countries actually require employers to offer upwards of over 4 weeks of paid vacation time per year. The city of Rome, Italy may take the cake at an average of 32 vacation days – over 6 weeks – for workers.

Such a high vacation time requirement is a two-edged sword for both employers and employees, of course. Current economic conditions in the European Union put a lot of pressure on workers not to take advantage of anywhere near all that time so they can remain competitive in the marketplace.

With 12.5% unemployment across Italy as at the end of 2015, it would be hard to breezily tell your boss on June 1, “Ciao,” you’ll see her mid-July. You might find an especially stringent employee evaluation and a nice packing box waiting for you once you return to work.

Maybe not the best example for us to follow.

BALANCING ACT

How do we balance our American tendency toward overwork against the fear of falling behind if we leave our duties unattended for too long?

The first part of the answer lies in the old adage, “All things in moderation.” The second part lies in communication.

So here’s your to-do list, American Worker.

#1. Read your workplace vacation policy.

How much paid vacation is available to you? Policies are built on past issues and subsequent problem-solving. Just knowing how many vacation days are available gives you a benchmark of what your predecessors in the organization have needed, against which you can measure your vacation usage.

#2. Talk to your supervisors and coworkers.

Ask around about how much time others in the office take. Get a sense of the norms of your office and decide whether you’re going to fall in line by taking as much as everyone else, or challenge the status quo by taking the maximum.

#3. Make a vacation plan.

Ask your teammates to help you cover your workload when you are away and offer to reciprocate. Otherwise, no one is ever going to enjoy the primary benefit of vacation: escaping responsibility. The mental health benefits of vacations are zero if you are just worrying from a different location.

NOT WORKING IS HARD WORK

Yes, this is difficult. It requires you to acknowledge you have needs that seem counterproductive to the organization you work for (but aren’t). It requires you to express those needs to your team and to trust teammates with your workload.

It’s hard, but you can do it. No joke.