As summer winds down, many people are starting to plan last minute summer vacations. Whether it’s just an extended weekend getaway or two weeks on a sunny, sandy beach, vacations offer a time to renew, recharge, and refresh.
So it doesn’t make much sense for companies to discourage their employees from using their vacation time. In fact, bosses should be making sure that all of their employees take every hour of Paid Time Off (PTO) or vacation days that they are entitled to.
It’s actually good for your business.
All Work and No Play
No matter what kind of work you do, if you spend too much time on the job sooner or later you are going to get burned out. This is true whether you are a forklift operator, a school teacher, a policeman, or a chief executive officer.
Most people can’t handle thinking about work all the time. There’s a reason we have eight-hour work days (in theory, anyway) and weekends off. People need time off to get away from the pressures and frustrations of work.
Spending time with family and friends instead of co-workers and bosses is good for the mind, body, and soul. So using vacation time to actually relax a little can ensure that when you finally do return to work you will be fresh and renewed.
It’s Your Vacation Time
Many, if not most, businesses today will give their employees some sort of PTO or vacation time benefit. Workers build up vacation days or PTO hours over time, depending on how often and how long they work.
For some businesses, it may be two weeks per year. For others, it could be one PTO hour for every 20 or 40 hours workers spend on the jobs. In either case, this is a benefit that belongs to the employee, not the employer. So workers should be allowed to use this benefit whenever they want (within reason).
Balancing Needs
That’s not to say that some companies don’t have busy seasons or times when it’s all hands on deck. For example, during the weeks and months leading up to April 15, tax accountants can’t really take any time off.
Factories, warehouses or loading docks may be going at full speed right before the holidays. So they may want to enact “blackout dates” in which no vacations can be taken.
If you allow workers to take PTO or vacation days anytime they want outside of these critical times, they will usually be understanding. Running a successful business requires balancing the needs of the enterprise with those of its work force.