SHRM Survey Findings: Vacation’s Impact on the Workplace
In collaboration with and commissioned by
November 12, 2013
SHRM/U.S. Travel Association: Vacation's Impact on the Workplace ©SHRM 2013 2
• What types of vacation benefits do organizations offer? Slightly more than one-half (55%) of organizations offer paid vacation plans, whereas the remaining 45% offer paid time off plans.
• Among organizations with a paid vacation plan, how many vacation days do full-time employees receive annually? New employees with one year of service receive an average of 11 paid vacation days a year. For all full-time employees, most organizations (86%) are providing between 6-20 vacation days on average, with 40% providing 11-15 days.
• Do organizations with a paid vacation plan allow employees to roll over vacation days from one year to the next? About three out of five organizations (62%) allow employees to roll over vacation days—54% allow limited rollover days and 8% allow unlimited rollover. Among organizations with a limited rollover policy, 56% allow 1-10 vacation days to be rolled over. More than one-third of organizations (38%) require employees to use all of their vacation days each year; otherwise, their vacation days will be lost.
• Do employees use all of their available vacation days? Among organizations that do not allow vacation rollover, three-quarters (77%) indicate that most employees (81-100%) use all of their vacation days each year. Sixty-four percent of these organizations report an average of 0-2 unused vacation days and 31% report 3-5 unused days. Among organizations that allow rollover, 31% indicate that most employees (81-100%) use all of their vacation days each year. One-quarter of these organizations (26%) report an average of 0-2 unused vacation days, 39% report 3-5 unused days, and 34% report 6 or more unused days.
Key Findings: Vacation benefits for full-time employees
SHRM/U.S. Travel Association: Vacation's Impact on the Workplace ©SHRM 2013 3
• Do HR professionals think that it is important for employees to take their vacation? A large majority of HR professionals think that taking vacation is either extremely or very important for a variety of factors related to talent management, namely performance (94%), morale (92%), wellness (92%), a positive culture (90%), productivity (90%) and retention (88%). Fewer, although still a majority (70%), believe that taking vacation is extremely or very important for inspiring creativity.
• Do HR professionals think that employees who take most or all of their vacation each year differ on certain measurable outcomes from those who take less vacation? About three-quarters of HR professionals agree or strongly agree that employees who take most or all of their vacation are more likely to experience higher levels of job satisfaction (78%), be more productive (77%) and perform better (75%) compared with employees who take less vacation.
• If employees who were taking less vacation started taking more vacation, do HR professionals believe it would change certain measurable outcomes? More than two-thirds of HR professionals agree or strongly agree that if these employees started taking more vacation, they would experience higher levels of job satisfaction (74%), be more productive (72%), perform better (69%) and be more engaged at work (67%).
Key Findings: Importance of taking vacation
SHRM/U.S. Travel Association: Vacation's Impact on the Workplace ©SHRM 2013 4
• Know the numbers. HR professionals overwhelmingly agree that it is important for employees to take vacation because doing so positively affects employee satisfaction, productivity, wellness, etc. Therefore, it would be valuable to know how many vacation days employees are using and whether they are neglecting to take vacation. If employees are not taking vacation days, what is the reason?
• Take a lead. HR professionals can help influence the organization’s culture regarding vacation. Does your organization’s vacation policy fit with your organization’s culture? Is the vacation policy being communicated and applied accurately and fairly across the organization?
• Understand your employees. Many employers are doing more with less in the current economy. This could mean that your employees have greater workloads and are taking on more responsibility. Could your organization’s employees be feeling overwhelmed? Do managers and leaders encourage employees to take vacation? Do employees feel comfortable requesting vacation time? Is there a stigma associated with taking too much vacation time?
What do these findings mean for the HR profession?
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Vacation Benefits forFull-time Employees
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Type of vacation benefits offered to full-time employees
Note: n = 481. Organizations that do not offer vacation benefits were excluded from this analysis.
Paid vacation55%
Paid time off (PTO)45%
Because this study focuses on vacation benefits, the next
slides reflect answers to questions asked only of respondents whose organizations offer a paid vacation
plan.
SHRM/U.S. Travel Association: Vacation's Impact on the Workplace ©SHRM 2013 7
Paid vacation days offered to full-time employees
Note: Only organizations with a paid vacation plan were asked these questions. Organizations that offer unlimited vacation were excluded from these analyses.
1-5 vacation days
6-10 vacation days
11-15 vacation days
16-20 vacation days
21-25 vacation days
26 or morevacation days
3%
17%
40%
29%
6%
5%
All Employees: Average number of vacation days accrued annually
Vacation Days
Average 11
Minimum 5
Maximum 30
New Employees: Number of vacation days for one year of
service
n = 261
Note: n = 235. Respondents who answered “don’t know” were excluded from this analysis.
SHRM/U.S. Travel Association: Vacation's Impact on the Workplace ©SHRM 2013 8
Vacation rollover policy for full-time employees
Note: n = 256. Only organizations with a paid vacation plan were asked this question. Organizations that offer unlimited vacation were excluded from this analysis.
Limited to acertain
number ofrollover days
54%
Require all vacation days
to be used each year
(unused daysare lost)
38%
Unlimited number of rollover days
8%
Among organizations with
limited rollover days, 56% allow 1-10 vacation days to be rolled over from one year to
the next.
SHRM/U.S. Travel Association: Vacation's Impact on the Workplace ©SHRM 2013 9
Vacation rollover policy for full-time employees by organization sector
Note: Only statistically significant differences are shown.
Comparisons by organization sector:No Rollover
Publicly owned for-profit (55%)Privately owned for-profit (46%)
> Nonprofit (25%)
Comparisons by organization sector• Publicly and privately owned for-profit organizations are more likely than nonprofit organizations to
require all vacation days to be used each year.
Comparisons by organization sector:Limited Rollover
Nonprofit (70%)Government (71%)
> Publicly owned for-profit (33%)
Nonprofit (70%) > Privately owned for-profit (49%)
• Nonprofit and government organizations are more likely than publicly owned for-profits, and nonprofit organizations are more likely than privately owned for-profits, to allow a limited number of vacation days to be rolled over from one year to the next.
Comparisons by organization sector:Unlimited Rollover
Government (29%) >Privately owned for-profit (5%)
Nonprofit (5%)
• Government organizations are more likely than privately owned for-profit and nonprofit organizations to allow an unlimited number of vacation days to be rolled over from one year to the next.
SHRM/U.S. Travel Association: Vacation's Impact on the Workplace ©SHRM 2013 10
Number of vacation rollover days for full-time employees at organizations with a limited vacation rollover policy
Note: n = 134. Only organizations with a paid vacation plan that allows a limited number of rollover days were asked this question. Percentages do not equal 100% due to rounding.
1-5 rollover days
6-10 rollover days
11-15 rollover days
16-20 rollover days
21-25 rollover days
26-30 rollover days
31 or more rollover days
35%
21%
10%
10%
6%
7%
10%
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Percentage of full-time employees that fully utilize all of their accrued paid vacation days each year
Note: Only organizations with a paid vacation plan were asked this question. Percentages may not equal 100% due to rounding. Organizations that offer unlimited vacation were excluded from this analysis.
20% or fewer employees
21-40% of employees
41-60% of employees
61-70% of employees
71-80% of employees
81-90% of employees
91-100% of employees
6%
16%
19%
9%
18%
18%
13%
0%
2%
2%
4%
15%
24%
53%
Required to use all vacation days (n = 96)Can roll over limited number of days (n = 130)
Range of categories
is 10%
Range of categories
is 20%
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Average number of unused vacation days for full-time employees
Note: Only organizations with a paid vacation plan were asked this question. Percentages do not equal 100% due to rounding. Organizations that offer unlimited vacation were excluded from this analyses.
0-2 unused days
3-5 unused days
6-8 unused days
9-11 unused days
12 or more unused days
64%
31%
4%
0%
1%
26%
39%
19%
10%
5%
Can roll over limited number of days (n = 129)
Overall, 61% of organizations report
that employees have an average of 3 or more unused
vacation days each year.
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The Importance of Taking Vacation
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HR professionals’ opinion about the importance of employees taking vacation for the following outcomes:
Note: n = 468-480. Respondents who answered “don’t know” were excluded from this analysis. Percentages may not equal 100% due to rounding. The “not important” category is a combination of “not very important” and “not important at all” response options. Questions are sorted in descending order by the “extremely important” response option.
Inspiring creativity
Improving productivity
Maintaining a positiveorganizational culture
Employee retention
Achieving and maintaining a high level of performance
Promoting employee wellness
Maintaining highemployee morale
31%
40%
47%
49%
50%
51%
51%
39%
50%
43%
39%
44%
41%
41%
25%
8%
10%
10%
5%
6%
7%
5%
1%
1%
2%
0%
1%
<1%
Extremely important Very important Somewhat important
Not important
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HR professionals’ agreement/disagreement: “Employees who take most or all of their vacation each year are more likely than employees who do not to...”
Note: n = 461-475. Respondents who answered “don’t know” were excluded from this analysis. Percentages may not equal 100% due to rounding. Questions are sorted in descending order by the sum of “strongly agree” and “agree” response options.
Be considered betterteam players
Take fewer sick days
Stay with the organizationlonger
Experience greater employee engagement
Perform better
Be more productivein their job
Experience higher levelsof job satisfaction
13%
18%
22%
21%
20%
21%
25%
30%
40%
38%
47%
55%
56%
53%
41%
26%
29%
23%
17%
16%
16%
13%
13%
9%
7%
7%
5%
5%
3%
3%
2%
1%
1%
1%
1%
Strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly Disagree
SHRM/U.S. Travel Association: Vacation's Impact on the Workplace ©SHRM 2013 16
HR professionals’ agreement: “Employees who take most or all of their vacation each year are more likely than employees who do not to...”
Note: Only statistically significant differences are shown. The “agree” category for this analysis is a combination of “strongly agree” and “agree” response options.
Comparisons by rollover policy:Agree that employees who take most or all of their vacation will stay with the organization
longer
Required to use all vacation days (70%) > Can roll over limited number of days (55%)
Comparisons by rollover policy
Comparisons by rollover policy:Agree that employees who take most or all of their vacation will be more productive in their
jobs
Required to use all vacation days (85%) > Can roll over limited number of days (69%)
SHRM/U.S. Travel Association: Vacation's Impact on the Workplace ©SHRM 2013 17
HR professionals’ agreement: “Employees who take most or all of their vacation each year are more likely than employees who do not to...”
Note: Only statistically significant differences are shown. The “agree” category for this analysis is a combination of “strongly agree” and “agree” response options.
Comparisons by organization sector:Agree that employees who take most or all of their vacation are more likely to be more
productive in their jobs
Privately owned for-profit (79%) > Government (57%)
Comparisons by organization sector
Comparisons by organization sector:Agree that employees who take most or all of their vacation experience higher levels of job
satisfaction
Publicly owned for-profit (89%) >Nonprofit (71%)
Government (63%)
SHRM/U.S. Travel Association: Vacation's Impact on the Workplace ©SHRM 2013 18
HR professionals’ agreement/disagreement: “If employees who were taking less vacation started taking more of their available paid vacation days each year, they would be more likely to...”
Note: n = 448-458. Respondents who answered “don’t know” were excluded from this analysis. Percentages may not equal 100% due to rounding. Questions are sorted in descending order by the sum of “strongly agree” and “agree” response options.
Be considered betterteam players
Take fewer sick days
Stay with the organizationlonger
Experience greater employee engagement
Perform better
Be more productivein their job
Experience higher levelsof job satisfaction
10%
15%
14%
14%
15%
15%
19%
31%
39%
42%
53%
54%
57%
55%
40%
28%
31%
23%
21%
19%
17%
18%
17%
12%
9%
10%
9%
9%
2%
2%
1%
1%
1%
1%
1%
Strongly agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly disagree
SHRM/U.S. Travel Association: Vacation's Impact on the Workplace ©SHRM 2013 19
HR professionals’ agreement: “If employees who were taking less vacation started taking more of their available paid vacation days each year, they would be more likely to...”
Note: Only statistically significant differences are shown. The “agree” category for this analysis is a combination of “strongly agree” and “agree” response options.
Comparisons by organization sector:Agree that if employees started taking more vacation they would experience greater
employee engagement
Publicly owned for-profit (74%)Privately owned for-profit (70%)
> Nonprofit (51%)
Comparisons by organization sector
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Demographics
SHRM/U.S. Travel Association: Vacation's Impact on the Workplace ©SHRM 2013 21
Demographics: Organization Industry
Note: n = 464. Percentages do not equal 100% due to multiple response options.
Percentage
Professional, scientific and technical services 25%
Health care and social assistance 18%
Finance and insurance 13%
Manufacturing 13%
Government agencies 9%
Educational services 8%
Religious, grant-making, civic, professional and similar organizations 5%
Retail trade 5%
Accommodation and food services 4%
Construction 4%
Information 4%
SHRM/U.S. Travel Association: Vacation's Impact on the Workplace ©SHRM 2013 22
Demographics: Organization Industry (continued)
Note: n = 464. Percentages do not equal 100% due to multiple response options.
Percentage
Transportation and warehousing 4%
Wholesale trade 4%
Utilities 3%
Administrative and support and waste management and remediation services
2%
Arts, entertainment, and recreation 2%
Mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction 2%
Real estate and rental and leasing 2%
Repair and maintenance 2%
Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting 1%
Personal and laundry services <1%
Other industry 3%
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Demographics: Organization Sector
n = 463
Privately owned for-profit
Nonprofit
Publicly owned for-profit
Government
Other
54%
22%
15%
7%
2%
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Demographics: Organization Staff Size
n = 457
1 to 99 employees
100 to 499 employees
500 to 2,499 employees
2,500 to 24,999 employees
25,000 or more employees
27%
41%
19%
10%
3%
SHRM/U.S. Travel Association: Vacation's Impact on the Workplace ©SHRM 2013 25
n = 469
Demographics: Other
U.S.-based operations only 84%
Multinational operations 16%
Single-unit organization: An organization in which the location and the organization are one and the same.
36%
Multi-unit organization: An organization that has more than one location.
64%
Multi-unit headquarters determines HR policies and practices
68%
Each work location determines HR policies and practices
2%
A combination of both the work location and the multi-unit headquarters determines HR policies and practices
31%
Is your organization a single-unit organization or a multi-unit organization?
For multi-unit organizations, are HR policies and practices determined by the multi-unit headquarters, by each work location or by both?
Does your organization have U.S.-based operations (business units) only, or does it operate multinationally?
n = 469
Note: n = 307. Percentages do not equal 100% due to rounding.
Corporate (companywide) 87%
Business unit/division 10%
Facility/location 3%
n = 307
What is the HR department/function for which you responded throughout this survey?
SHRM/U.S. Travel Association: Vacation's Impact on the Workplace ©SHRM 2013 26
SHRM Survey Findings: Vacation’s Impact on the Workplace
• Response rate = 17%• 481 HR professionals from a randomly selected sample of SHRM’s membership with
the job title of director or above participated in this survey• Margin of error +/-5%• Survey fielded August 22-September 5, 2013
In collaboration with and commissioned by
Survey Methodology
SHRM/U.S. Travel Association: Vacation's Impact on the Workplace ©SHRM 2013 27
Publicly available Research
• 2014 Holiday Scheduleshttp://www.shrm.org/Research/SurveyFindings/Articles/Pages/2014HolidaySchedules.aspx
Research Available Online to SHRM Members Only(Note: Hard copies of these reports can be purchased at SHRMstore.org)
• 2013 Employee Benefits Report http://www.shrm.org/Research/SurveyFindings/Articles/Pages/2013Employee-Benefits.aspx
• 2012 Employee Job Satisfaction and Engagement Report http://www.shrm.org/Research/SurveyFindings/Articles/Pages/2012EmployeeJobSatisfaction.aspx
Fee-Based Services
• SHRM Customized Benchmarking Service – Paid Leave Reporthttp://www.shrm.org/Research/benchmarks/Pages/default.aspx
Additional SHRM Resources
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For more survey/poll findings, visit shrm.org/surveys
For more information about SHRM’s Customized Research Services, visit shrm.org/customizedresearch
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About SHRM Research
Project lead:Tanya Mulvey, researcher, SHRM Research
Project contributors:Alexander Alonso, Ph.D., SPHR, vice president, SHRM ResearchEvren Esen, manager, Survey Research Center, SHRM ResearchChristina Lee, researcher, SHRM Research
Copy editor:Katya Scanlan, SHRM Knowledge Center
SHRM/U.S. Travel Association: Vacation's Impact on the Workplace ©SHRM 2013 29
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