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Do Companies Punish Workers Who Take Vacations?
Hugh Pickens writes "Chad Brooks reports that a steady stream of research over the past year reveals that Americans aren't taking vacations and it's because they are afraid to take time off from work for fear of appearing less than dedicated to their employer with one survey showing that 70 percent of employees said they weren't using all their earned vacation days in 2011. 'You have this kind of fear of not wanting to be seen as a slacker,' says John de Graaf, executive director of Take Back Your Time, an organization focused on challenging the epidemic of overwork, over-scheduling and time famine facing society. De Graaf adds that while some companies are good about encouraging employees to use earned time off, there also are some that aren't worried about the potential repercussions that may come from that nose-to-the-grindstone approach. 'They think, "If I burn someone out, I can always find someone else,"' says de Graaf. 'They think [employees] are expendable.' Even when they do take vacation, research shows many employees aren't leaving their work behind. In one study, 66 percent of surveyed employees said they would check and respond to email during their time off, and 29 percent expect to attend meetings virtually while on vacation. De Graaf is not optimistic anything will ever get done to free employees of their fear of taking time off. 'This is the only wealthy country in the world that does not guarantee any paid vacation time,' says de Graaf. 'Every other country understands that this makes people healthier and creates a better workforce.'"
It's very important to me to be able to fuck off from my job. I skip out early, I take days off, I ignore phone calls after hours. As long as I get the job done during the day, I don't care what people think. I am a slacker, and I enjoy it. Life's too short to fret over the grindstone. Don't take life too seriously!
> Until the economy improves and there are more jobs than applicants this will continue
Ever considered U.S. economy is in deep shit because of its workers being overworked, exhausted, because they learned to keep low profile.
ever considered insufficient loyalty from employers results in insufficient loyalty from employees?
I worked for the Australian branch of a multinational, when we got put under the management of the US branches.
Now this was done because we were putting our releases on time, on budget, while the US branches were constantly missing deadlines and getting hit by penalty payments. So we were basically moved to make their departments figures look better.
The US managers kept coming out, looking at what we were doing and how hard we were working, and immediately deciding that if they could take our 4 weeks annual leave off us, we'd be even more productive! They could not get their heads around the idea that we were able to put in that much effort because we knew that when crunch finished we'd be able to take a couple of weeks to rest and recover before the next sprint. If you don't get time off, then you've got to pace yourself.
We never got it through their heads, and eventually we were written off as culturally lazy, and sold off. Even though we were the ones hitting deadlines, and they were always running late.
If you don't enjoy your job, then that sucks.
How many people do you think really enjoy their jobs ?! The only reason many people work is simply for the paycheck.
Hell no! If I were making 50k a year I would feel fucking rich and be greatful to work 12 hours a day. In that environment where these poor saps would do anything to take your job to feed your kids you have to suck it up. This isn't 1999 anymore.
Congratulations, you're well on the way to becoming a citizen of the 3rd world. Someone else will be greatful to take 40k a year to work 14 hours a day. Someone else will beat them to the job as 30k to live on site and do 16hr shifts 7 days a week would be a huge step up for them. And someone else will be fine taking 20k to do that work.
This is why guaranteed working conditions are necessary. Without minimums competition doesn't drive wealth, it drives a race to the bottom. Booms are the exception, not the rule.
These posts express my own personal views, not those of my employer
You are a dummy.
This is easy to solve, you tell them you would love to reschedule. They only need to pay for any lost deposits and for the whole new wedding. If you really are that important they would do that.
Hear Hear!!
I mean, it isn't black or white...I enjoy my job enough...I'm not unhappy. I wouldn't do it if there wasn't some pleasure in it, HOWEVER, if I won the powerball tomorrow, I doubt I'd even go back in to collect the few personal things I keep at my desk.
I, like I think most would do...would never work again a day in my life!!
I'd be way too busy travelling, chasing women and generally having fun. Would part of my fun be playing with computers? Sure....but only for fun or interesting projects.
I've heard that some people are almost 'defined' by their jobs. I personally can't understand that. I am SO much more than that...
I ONLY work, in order to support the lifestyle I enjoy (which of course takes money) that I enjoy outside the office. And...I do need time out of the office to enjoy MY life and doing things I enjoy....and play with the toys I buy. If I didn't have to worry about a paycheck, you can bet your sweet ass I'd never work again at a 'job'. Why would anyone?
Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.........
A few people have stated that they work for free because if they don't they might lose their job. It is this sort of short sighted, cowardly thinking that got you into this mess. If everyone refused to work for free then this abuse would stop. I was in an hourly job that paid overtime. I was "promoted" to a salaried position. If I worked normal hours it was a raise in pay. As I was no longer being paid for overtime I stopped working overtime except for the occasional emergency. I was not fired. Management asked me once why I would not do overtime and I told them I don't work for free, but would be happy to discuss over time pay. They never brought it up again.
In the USA there seems to be this myth that it is best for everyone to make their own way in the world without any help. The government should get out of the way and let people succeed. The reality is that USA citizens let big companies walk all over them and the reward this behaviour by voting in governments friendly to big business and the rich.
You might want to consider unions, and voting for a government or party that is for regular citizens not the mega wealthy. A party in favour of civilized labour law that includes no firing without cause after a probation period, paid annual vacation, paid overtime, and other laws that are simply fair and levelling the playing field between employee and employer.
Anarchists never rule
what a pile of shit. It's easy enough to legislate against those things. Fuck this libertarian crap where we have to accommodate those with capital so they can continue to increase their capital at the expense of everyone else with less capital. It's a scam. Part of me wants it to continue to get worse because at some point (just think a decade more of stagnant middle class and regular (not accounting for recent dollar printing) inflation, we will swallow up another 20% of the middle class and over 60% of the population will essentially be in a state of indentured servitude. 40% are now. The next 20% won't take it so lightly. I'll join them as we dance in the entrails of the upper class. At that point we won't even care what happens next.
As my law teacher always said "I always read in the papers "looking for job". Ladies and gentlemen, that's a lie. Nobody's looking for a job. Everyone's just looking for money".
It was funny when I was 18. It had become truer and truer with every day I live.
We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
They pay for more in absolute dollars but they pay a far lower tax rate.
When you add in fixed taxes and license fees, the difference is even more dramatic.
Top 400 familes pay about 17.5% total tax load.
The top 2.67% pay about 23% total tax load
The folks at 60% to 80% pay about 40% total tax load.
The folks at 20% (poverty) pay about 25% total tax load.
To the wealthy, $3.70 in gasoline taxes for a tank of gasoline is basically a 0% rate. To the poor, $3.70 in gasoline taxes is about 5% of their weekly income.
Same for cigarette, phone taxes, booze, sales tax, etc.
Property tax appears in your rent or in your mortgage. It runs from about 5% for the poor (but lower as they share housing) to about 3% for the middle class to about 2% for the wealthy.
I.e.
A $1000/year property tax bill embedded in their rent for a poor person is a huge chunk of their income.
A $30,000 tax bill for the top 2.67% is about 2%.
The poor spend most of their income on taxable purchases. The wealthy do not. So an 8% sales tax load hits the poor for 8% of their income while it hits the wealthy for under 1%.
Google "who pays state taxes" and also look here http://www.taxfoundation.org/news/show/250.html#table3
The media owned by the wealthy has really been pushing the propaganda that the lower 50% of income earners pay no taxes.
But the more accurate statement is the bottom 50% pay low or no federal income taxes ( tho that changes big time this year now that hte earned income tax credit has been removed) while the wealthy pay a much lower percentage of their income as taxes.
It is accurate to say they pay more taxes in absolute dollars. But did you realize if the tax bill for running the country was divided evenly, it works out to over $11,000 per citizen? More like $33,000 per working person. And that's ignoring social security taxes.
She was like chocolate when she drank... semi-sweet at first and then increasingly bitter.
sure someone working 12hrs a day is producing two jobs' worth? i'd rather bet on 2/3 worth of a rested, relaxed worker. maybe even just 1/2 worth of a positively motivated worker.
What has been found in actual studies was that a person working 60 hours per week for six weeks and a person working 40 hours per week for six weeks produce the same amount of work. No gain whatsoever from slaving extra 20 hours a week.
However, after six weeks you have one person being totally tired and one person fit. From then on, the one doing 40 hour weeks will be more productive.
I enjoy my job. I have excellent co-workers that I enjoy spending time with.
I love spending time with my family and friends while camping, visiting museums, travelling, etc. more.
To each his own, but I only work so I can support my enjoying life with friends and family habit.
If you had nothing to do all day, you'd get bored soon enough.
There are other things to do with your time than work. Why not go see the world? It's a huge fascinating place that few these days get to see. If you had the time and finances to do it.. GO. Or, if you still feel locked into a life of servitude, why not volunteer your time? Go help out at a homeless shelter, plant some trees, spend time with the lonely elderly. If you no longer have to worry about you, go help out somebody else who isn't as fortunate, and be a decent human being.
I don't understand you can say that...why would you guess I'd have 'nothing to do all day'?
I was between gigs for 7 months a few years ago...I live in New Orleans. My typical day..get up, walk the dog around the neighborhood...eat breakfast, jump on my motorcycle, hit the gym for a couple hours...home...do some job searching, research, reading..etc...then when weather was nice, I'd hop on my bike and go all around the city. I saw things new every day...being a tourist in my city...all the art museums, hit some bars to listen to bands and run around the Quarter all day. When it got to about 3pm or so, I'd call and plan to meet some friends of mine getting off of work to have some beers....and ride a bit more around the city, and then home...cook dinner, then watch tv or play with my home toys (computers, tv, audio, etc).
I frankly almost hated that I landed another gig (and unfortuantely this time had to go W2)...I have a good job. I make a ton of money....but I sure would rather be doing what I was doing.
There is SO much to do in my city...and when I want a break, if I was powerball winner...I'd take vacations!! Travel...how can you get tired of that? Meeting new people, seeing new places, trying new foods....getting plowed on a new beach..?
I guess there are just a lot of people out of there that don't have enough imagination to figure out all the fun things to do in the world. I could easily spend the rest of my life doing just that if I didn't have to worry about money.
Hell...likely as not, after I'd settled down from the initial fun with all that money...is drop my dog off at my parents'....and jump on my motorcycle...and ride across and around the USA. So much of it I've not seen yet....
Seriously...if you didn't have to work...you don't think you could keep yourself occupied?
I don't like to work. Period...there is NO job out there that I'd like to do if I didn't have to earn a living..nothing. I easily fill my limited time away from work having an adventure in life....if I had the money, I could easily fill each and every day doing something fun and really having an adventure.
I honestly have no comprehension on how anyone else could think differently.....I guess it comes to that other concept I can't grasp...someone being defined by their work that I hear about. I guess that's why some peope really LOSE it...when they lose a job (not considering just loss of income)...but from what I understand...they actually get depressed because somehow...their job is THEM.
Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.........
A lot of people like to talk about how you should find a way to get paid for doing what you love, but for the vast majority of people, that's impossible. The world needs ditch diggers and customer service agents and so forth, and always will. You're not gonna find someone who really enjoys cleaning bird shit off the sidewalk, who would do it even if they didn't need the money. The vast majority of people work for the paycheck, and that will always be the case. The fact that a fellow bird shit cleaner is a good guy doesn't matter, you could always hang out with him after work (although realistically, suddenly acquiring that sort of money will quickly ruin most casual friendships).
Yeah, you'd get bored doing nothing, but there's a whole range of options between "doing nothing" and "working 40 hours a week". You could join clubs, do volunteer work, start your own little project that may or may not ever make money, etc.
If what you're saying is true (and if it is, I'm not even quite sure how you found time to read this article on Slashdot and post a reply?) ... you *really* need to sit back, think about what you just wrote, and ask yourself if that's REALLY how you want your life to be from here forward!
First of all, I would assume and hope you're getting paid pretty well for working all those 18 hour days and having so much responsibility. That means, you're simply not doing something right if you haven't been able to put aside some of that money in savings, in case you DO need to switch jobs and don't have a check for a while. (So that situation you're so afraid of, of being out of work for 3 years and not knowing how you were going to sleep or eat shouldn't have to happen again.)
Second, yep, fewer and fewer businesses have any loyalty to employees, but that should be a 2-way street! If they view you as that "expendable", then why work so hard for them?! Do the basics outlined in your job description, and not anything more unless you actually WANT to do it. If, like you say, they "throw you to the curb" thinking they can get someone a lot cheaper to do the same or better, LET THEM. Either they're right and you were simply getting paid too much for the value you actually brought to their table, or (much more likely) they'll fail a few times in a row and start adjusting their expectations and/or pay scale as they learn how wrong they were.
And third? Maybe you need to spend less time worrying about customers running into these mistakes you're concerned about, and more time documenting procedures so OTHERS can do some of these tasks properly? It sounds like right now, a lot of people are getting paid to screw things up that you're putting in all these insane hours correcting. You've got to break that cycle, even IF it means a temporary drop in customer satisfaction ....