And for the 3^rd week in a row, I am hovering on something: Has the work/life balance gotten so out of whack that we are creating vacation hoarders?? Or are vacation hoarders just wack?

Admittedly, I don’t understand how people fail to use their vacation time. There has never been a year when I don’t use every minute of the 4 weeks I accrue – and a few extra days of leaving early when I can get it, too. I don’t need to have anywhere special to go. I once took a 5 day vacation to my couch where I watched soap operas and judge shows and talk shows and completely vegged out for the week! It was wonderful. Our minds and bodies need rest in order to continue to perform at their best, no matter what our job is. The occasional 3- or 4-day weekend is great and so are holidays. But I think people are at their best when they get a good 5-10 consecutive business days off once or twice in a year. Now I understand that this isn’t possible for everyone. If you are a person who doesn’t earn paid time off at your job, this post isn’t for you … However, I will say this: if you don’t have that benefit, I would seriously encourage you to seek employment at a place that offers you that option. It speaks volumes when an employer doesn’t believe it is worthwhile to reward long-term employees with paid time off. It is every bit as important as medical and retirement benefits … But if you are hoarding your vacation for some reason, I encourage you to ask yourself: why?

If you are like my Regional staffer who doesn’t want to use his time because he might need it later even though you never run out of time, you are a vacation hoarder and you are wack! He told me that he thinks it sets a positive example and the rest of the people in his office admire him for taking time unpaid. No one admires him for saving vacation time or taking unpaid days when he has time available. In fact, people think he is really stupid for doing that because the rest of them are either at work or using vacation time on that day. He’s not defending a political principle or taking the time unpaid to show solidarity with other employees; he’s just hoarding his time!

If you are like my Payroll Coordinator who is unwilling to adjust his plans to be in the office during an important transition that is a key part of his job duties, you are a vacation hoarder and you are wack! This guy had already announced he wasn’t going anywhere important; he was doing a few local things with family and some clean-up around his house. His unwillingness to adjust his time to be available during this
transition demonstrates a lack of pride in his work and no desire to be a part of the team. It’s arguably insubordinate. He is using his vacation time as a weapon and a shield. If he’d had travel plans, I would understand. But when all he plans to do is some other honey-do items, it doesn’t seem like a sacrifice to adjust the plan slightly to make sure the transition goes smoothly for our 2,000 employees.

If you are like my I/T Director who didn’t return early from vacation when the system unraveled … I don’t know what you are. On the one hand, he is wack because it was a really serious issue and he made ZERO attempt to help resolve it. Not even remotely. He made himself completely unavailable. Our techs were able to rig things so we could limp along until he got back. However, they probably could have fixed most of the problem with a few instructions if he’d just called-in. Instead, he sent an
email saying he was unreachable and would deal with it when he returned. How
does one send an email when you are unreachable?? Clearly, you had internet
access …

And he’s wack because he waited until the last minute to use his time. He’s another one that does it every year – and ends up taking almost a whole month off because he has so much time to burn. As a senior-level person, it is irresponsible to me, especially when no one else is trained to pick up the slack while you are out.

At the same time, I know our I/T Director works very hard. He deserved time away to clear his mind from the day-to-day of the job and all it entails. If the company didn’t keep him so busy, perhaps he wouldn’t need to be a vacation hoarder and he could spread the time out instead. At the senior levels of organizations, it is becoming
increasingly difficult for people to disconnect from work. We have devices and
technology that keep us tethered to work no matter where we are. We end up
checking email and voicemail after hours, on weekends and on vacation. That isn’t
right, proper or fair, either. And when a person doesn’t conform by refusing to
carry a blackberry or work remotely, they are judged and labeled and sometimes
disciplined. That isn’t necessarily the message an employer wants to send about
its expectations or culture either … is it?

One thing I am sure of, our vacation policy needs an overhaul. The pressure of use-it-or-lose-it time off is becoming more of a curse than a blessing. We need a policy that better aligns with our goals and expectations.  So I’m going to create a proposal to change it!

I welcome your stories on vacation hoarders and successful vacation policies.