Dive Brief:
- Businesses could see an uptick in the number of professionals taking off during the week of July Fourth this year, according to survey by Captivate's Office Pulse. Over half (58%) of professionals surveyed by Office Pulse plan to take off at least one day this week, out of the 430 white collar professionals queried.
- Most of those polled (82%) will be taking off on Friday, July 5, and more than one-third (37%) said they intend to be out of office on July 3. Among those professionals who do plan to show up on July 5, more than 1 in 4 said they would be either hungover or extra tired that day, Office Pulse said.
- Last year, 63% of professionals polled said they planned to take off the day after July 4, Office Pulse said. The firm cited statistics from AAA showing that nearly 49 million Americans plan to travel this week, a 4.1% increase from 2018.
Dive Insight:
July Fourth falls mid-week again this year, meaning requests for days off are likely. HR may need to check in with managers to ensure they're prepared; Office Pulse data from last year showed the high volume of vacation requests during the holiday caused stress for 1 out of 5 managers.
Holidays are generally popular vacation times that can leave managers shuffling schedules to ensure work coverage. Encouraging employees to submit vacation requests as early as possible and approving them on a first-come, first-served basis can allow managers to prepare for coverage ahead of time.
But days like the Fourth of July are also good moments for employees to de-stress. According to a CareerCast survey, employee stress appears to have risen in the past two years. In a LinkedIn Learning report, 70% of stressed-out respondents said their workloads were to blame.
Employees recovering from holidays might be better off taking that extra day off anyway. A 2018 O.C. Tanner study found that more employees experienced a boost in engagement after a one- or two-week vacation than those who don't regularly do so. Encouraging workers to do so isn't always easy, though, particularly if an organization's culture discourages taking time away from the office.