Most workers in Britain get 28 days of annual leave each year- that’s just over five and a half weeks, based on working a five day week. Yet, recent studies have found that some people are reluctant to take it…why is that? Well, 33% of the people surveyed said that they didn’t take all of their annual leave due to the amount of work they had to do.
Research by Croner House found that 13% feel that they can’t take a day off and four per cent worry about what their place of work would think of them if they did. However, a study conducted by Virgin Atlantic has found that some British people are putting the importance of a holiday at the forefront of their mind, with 56.3% of respondents saying that they would give up some of their salaries in exchange for more annual leave each year. One in five people would give up as much as 10% of their wages.
A holiday does seem to have the desired effect, as 66% of people said that they felt more productive following a holiday, with 67% reporting a higher level of job satisfaction as a result of returning from a holiday. A spokesperson for Virgin Atlantic said it was clear that time for holidays is very important to workers in the UK, saying how easy it is to get stuck behind your desk, but highlighting how important it is to get the time away.
Graham Allcott, the founder of Think Productive, said that not having time away from work can lead to increased levels of stress, feelings of depression and decreased creativity.
How to make the most of your annual leave:
- Take shorter breaks throughout the year rather than one longer holiday, so you have something to look forward to.
- Use the bank holidays to get more days off for less annual leave.
- Book off a Monday and Friday, head off on a city break to the likes of Dublin, Paris or Barcelona- only a short flight away and affordable with the likes of Easyjet.
- Take a half day on a Friday and spend the weekend in the UK- York, Warwick and Glasgow are some great places for a weekend away with shopping, culture and relaxation.
Do you regularly use all of your annual leave? Do you go over your allowance and take some unpaid? Or are you afraid to take time off work? Let us know in the comments what you think!
