The Alamo survey yielded some disturbing statistics related to vacations as well:
• 59% of Millennials reported feeling a sense of shame for taking or planning a vacation compared to those 41% of those 35 or older (A)
• 42% of Millenials report engaging in “vacation shaming” of their colleagues compared to 24% of those 35 or older (A)
• 44% of participants in the 2016 survey reported that they never do work while on vacation, which is substantially lower than the 48% who made the same statement in the 2015 survey (A)
Millennials as Managers
Currently, around 28% of Millennials hold management positions and this percentage likely to grow as their generation gain experience.
The good news:
• 56% of Millennial managers believe that their employees who take vacation time are less stressed and prone to burnout
• 53% of Generation X and Baby Boomer managers agree
• 50% of Millennial managers believe that their employees who take vacation time are more productive
• 47% of Generation X and Baby Boomer managers agree
• 39% of Millennial managers believe that their employees who take vacation time are more willing to put in longer hours when needed
• 34% of Generation X and Baby Boomer managers agree
The bad news:
• 47% of Millennial managers report that they feel pressure from their company to not approve time off requests for their team members
• 34% of Generation X agree
• 37% of Baby Boomers agree
The Danger of Work Martyrdom to Travel, Hospitality & Tourism
Project: Time Off, an organization founded by the U.S. Travel Association, reports the increased pressures of the 24/7 always-on attitude when it comes to work caused an estimated 55% of working Americans to abandon some portion of their vacation days in 2015, leaving a record 658 million days of unused paid time off.
The cultural shift in attitude toward work and vacation that Project: Time Off advocates would certainly help solve this issue, but the if, when, and amount of this change can’t be predicted. Provider businesses and organizations in the travel, hospitality and tourism need to address the “vacation problem” now.
Has the Work Martyr “Vacation Problem” Hurt Your Business?
According to Travel + Leisure, the percentage of vacation days taken by American workers have been on the decline since 2000 (about the time the first Millenials entered the workforce). This decline has accelerated over time. Has your business suffered from this work martyr issue?