5 Companies That Are Encouraging Employees to Use Their Vacation Days
It turns out that taking vacation IS really all it’s cracked up to be. In fact, employees who take time off relish in both wellness benefits, including mental health and wellbeing improvements, as well as professional, including greater likelihood of a promotion and raise, some sources say.
And if employees are experiencing these benefits, employers are as well. In fact, a SHRM survey that gathered HR professionals’ opinions about vacation found that taking time off is important for a handful of talent management reasons, including performance, morale, culture, productivity, and retention.
But, the problem is that 54% of Americans are not using all of their vacation days because of guilt, fear of falling behind and more. Forward-thinking companies are trying to fix the problem, especially since unused vacation days are costing U.S companies a whopping $224 billion in liabilities.
We went through the recent Glassdoor rankings, specifically of those who offer creative vacation policies and even fund vacations, and identified some of the most unique packages here:
Bamboo HR: Employees who’ve worked at this HR software provider for at least 6 months can take advantage of a literal paid vacation. The company reimburses employees for up to $2,000 a year to help cover their travel costs, including flights and hotels.
FullContact: The contact management platform shows their passion for vacation by rewarding employees $7,500 per year for travel. The rules are simple: Employees must disconnect from your work devices and cannot work while on vacation.
Steelhouse: This ad tech company gets $2,000 towards a vacation of their choice. On top of that, they get to enjoy a three-day weekend once a month.
Kabbage: This financial tech company offers unlimited PTO plus a fully-paid six-week sabbatical program every five years of working there. Best of all, this includes a $6,000 stipend to encourage employees to do something memorable with friends and family.
IKEA: The popular Swedish furniture company is all about praising loyalty and tenure. They offer 3 weeks of vacation per year at the start of employment, followed by 5 weeks at 5 years, and 7 weeks per year after 10 years of employment.
This article is not intended to substitute for informed medical advice. You should not use this information to diagnose or treat a health problem or condition. Always check with your doctor before changing your diet, altering your sleep habits, taking supplements, or starting a new fitness routine.
