- A total of 2870 people responded to the July poll that asked, "Have you ever felt guilty about taking vacation or a sick day?" Monster found that nearly 60 percent of respondents do feel guilty about taking a vacation or sick day. Within this group, 39 percent say they feel guilty because they don’t like to "inconvenience others by making them cover my work," while 20 percent fear losing their job. The remaining 41 percent have no guilt about taking vacation or sick days, since they feel it’s "what [these days] are there for."
- And it seems that Americans need a vacation now more than ever before. According to the poll, "Do you get paid for working overtime?" 60 percent of the nearly 3000 respondents are actually putting in extra hours without receiving any additional pay.
- The July Polls also surveyed the preference for time off versus a higher salary. More than half of the 3011 respondents (65 percent) said they’d take a higher salary while 26 percent preferred more days off. Only 3 percent of respondents felt that their current benefits were enough, and the remaining 6 percent are paid for accrued vacation so it doesn’t make a difference to them.
"While it’s surprising to see how many people are not planning any time off this year, either due to guilt or fear of losing their jobs, it’s really interesting when you factor in the extra amount of time Americans are working, without any added compensation," said Jeff Quinn, senior director of research, Monster Worldwide. "With many workers spending additional unpaid time in the office, employers also need to consider quality of life implications, and the subsequent effects on work quality. And as the economy begins to turn around, retention could be a real concern for some employers."
