Employees Value Vacation Time; Willing to Sacrifice Benefits

While many workers appreciate their jobs, it never hurts to take some time off.  Some employees are even willing to give up benefits to do so, according to the following post.

Half of all workers who receive paid vacation time in the nation’s top 10 largest cities would be willing to sacrifice a workplace benefit in exchange for more paid time off. However, despite their desire for more free time, most employees don’t even use the vacation time they already receive.

This is the key finding from “Inspirato Insights: American Attitudes on Paid Time Off,” a new survey commissioned by destination vacation club Inspirato among adults in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston, Los Angeles, New York City, Philadelphia, San Francisco and Washington, D.C.

Additional findings uncovered by the survey include:

• Despite the down economy, more than one tenth of all employees who receive vacation time from their employer would prefer more time off over a higher salary or a promotion – and one sixth would forgo a compensation bonus in exchange for more paid time off.
• Ten percent of all workers given any vacation time would give up their company’s 401(k) match in return for more vacation time.
• The coveted private office from days gone by no longer seems to be the desirable benefit it once was: a quarter of respondents indicated they’d give up a chance at a private office for more vacation time.
• However, only a fraction (five percent) of workers who receive any vacation time are willing to take a pay cut for more time away from work.

Ironically, a majority of employees who receive paid time off (57 percent) do not use all the vacation time they receive, according to the survey.

Brent Handler, Founder and CEO of Inspirato

“As a dedicated entrepreneur currently in the midst of growing my own business, I can relate to how easy it can be to put off taking time for yourself and your family,” said Brent Handler, founder and CEO of Inspirato. “The opinions reflected in this survey reinforce the importance that vacations play in our lives. It’s encouraging to see that people recognize how vital it is to consider time away from work as essential – and even more critical than many of the valuable benefits that employees enjoy.”

Overall, 85 percent of survey respondents indicated their employer provides a paid vacation benefit, with an average of just over 19 days per year.

A willingness to sacrifice something in favor of vacation isn’t just limited to the workplace. Most survey respondents (80 percent) reported that they would be willing to skip an important event –including a baptism, graduation, wedding, funeral or dinner party hosted by a boss – in order to go on vacation.