Study reveals 28% of workers not taking full holidays

Almost one third of workers are not taking their full holiday entitlements, a new survey released today has revealed.

Respondents to a new survey from RecruitIreland.com appear to be working harder than ever and many are too busy to take their full holiday entitlements or are afraid to take them because "it's not the done thing" in their place of employment.

The RecruitIreland.com survey showed that 28% of respondents do not take their full holiday entitlements.

In relation to holiday entitlements, 66.5% are unhappy with the 20 days statutory holidays available in Ireland and consider it to be too short.

62% of respondents have between 20 to 22 days holiday entitlement. 22% have 23 to 25 days, 10% have 26 to 30 days and over 6% of respondents have in excess of 31 days holidays per year.

However when asked if they would trade some of their salary for additional holiday entitlements just 27% would trade a cut in salary for additional time off work.

When asked if they took their full entitlement, almost one third of respondents said they do not. Of those that do not, a significant majority (58%) said they were "too busy at work" to take their full holidays.

A further 11% said that it was not the done thing in their company and 10% said it would affect their promotional prospects.

It also seems that workers can't relax even when they are on holidays. Almost half of respondents (47%) provided their employers with a contact facility when they went on holidays while over one third handled work related phone calls.

20% worry that things will go wrong in work while they are away and 56% of respondents also think about changing career while on holidays.

Commenting on the results, Aoife Curtin, Marketing Manager of RecruitIreland.com said: "These results show that respondents see themselves as hard working and dedicated.

"However the old adage that all work and no play makes people dull, shows that there is an opportunity for employers to cultivate a culture where hard work is equally balanced with taking full holiday entitlements and ensuring an appropriate work/life balance.

"On a lighter note the results do show a positive side as only half of respondents have been tempted to quit work and stay on in their holiday resort to start a new life."