Typically when an applicant is hired for a full-time position, this new employee will receive a benefits package. Inside each plan, it may include a combination of paid holidays, sick, personal and paid time off, commonly known as vacation time. Although these perks are readily available, research from Right Management found that a majority of staff members will not use all of their paid time off by the time the fiscal year is over.
This is the third time since 2011 that these findings indicated such, even though all participants are eligible to get paid while not completing work-related tasks. Human resource departments can use their HR software to send out reminders out to employees to check if they have paid time off, and if they do, recommend they file their request.
“Every employee at every level should be encouraged to take time to reenergize, recharge and relax to be more satisfied and productive on the job,” Right Management general manager Matt Norquist said in the news release. “The importance of vacation cannot be understated in today’s workplace when companies are doing more with less and adding workloads to their teams.”
In some cases, businesses may not allow vacation hours that employees have accrued to carry over into the new year, which causes them to miss out on benefits that form part of their compensation package. Losing out on these opportunities can impact a staff member’s well being and performance in the long run.
“Ultimately, vacations contribute to engaged, loyal and satisfied employee teams and build a positive workplace culture that not only reduces turnover, but also creates a stronger brand image in the market,” Norquist added.
Only about 31 percent of respondents said they have or plan on using all of their paid time off by year’s end. HR software solutions can be used to quickly process paid time off requests once a team member receives clearance from their supervisor.