In the last few months, in my research for 3Sixty Insights I have delved into the labor statistics on overwork, burnout, and time off work. These issues fall under a broader category called work-life-balance and are used to form a data-driven picture about employee experience and well-being.
In my previous article, ” Productivity Dilemma ,“, I explained how American workers were more productive than their European counterparts, but at the expense of their well-being. It is important to note that American workers are behind countries like Luxembourg, Ireland and
Norway hourly labour productivity. Luxembourg and Ireland will have twice as much GDP per hour in 2023 ($146 and $143 respectively) than the US ($70), who are ranked between Guyana, Finland and the US.
The American Phenomenon
Pew Research Center’s article titled ‘How Americans view their Jobs’ published in 2023 found that 51% of American employees are extremely satisfied with their job, even though two-thirds said they were happy with the workplace dynamics. In the same survey 62% of respondents said that it is essential to them to be able take paid time off during vacations, sickness, or personal days.
About half of those with paid leave said that they used less than what their employer offered. In essence, these workers were giving their employer their time for free. In the US, this has resulted in approximately 750 millions vacation days being unused each year. About 160 million US adults are employed. That means that each working adult loses five vacation days per year.
Workers who do not take paid leave are working essentially for free. This can lead to resentment toward their employer. This can cost tens or even hundreds of millions of dollars in lost benefits and free labor. Harvard Business Review stated, “Imagine what impact these vacations would have on the U.S. Economy — on airlines and hotels, restaurants, attractions and towns, not to mention how it could affect individuals’ stress levels.”
The US is the only major country that does not mandate paid leave or holidays. This is left up to the employers in the US. Technically, employees can work for many months or years without a break. Mexico and China, two direct competitors, have more vacation days per year than the US despite the fact that the US employs nearly twice as many white-collar employees.
The workplace and national cultures are likely to play a significant role in this. Some workers refrain from taking additional time off because they don’t feel the need to, are afraid of falling behind or burdening their co-workers. Others may be discouraged by managers, have concerns about advancement and job security, or fear of being left behind. In my next article, I’ll go into more detail about this topic.
What can you do with this information?
In a world of globalization, where employers are focused on optimizing each dollar spent in payroll, it is time for HR technology and companies to take the challenge to fully factor this into employee experience as well as overall business performance.
Leadership must set up the work environment of employees so they are willing to give more productivity. All levels of management must share this responsibility.
Businesses that want to maximize their day-to-day operation need to dig deep into the daily productivity metrics to compound them over time. The above statistics show that HR and leadership need to accurately measure employee output and performance fluctuations. You can use this information to predict attrition and labour costs, as well as retention.
A once-high-performing employee may be underperforming because of burnout or a manager might be cracking due to the stress from managing a project that is two months late. There are many factors HR can monitor to ensure employees are in the optimum performance zone – where they are not too stressed or bored, but are still able to perform well day after day. Maybe the best way to improve their performance is not a reprimand, but a week’s PTO. This will allow them to return fresh and focused.
I would like to hear about organizations and vendors who are innovating and positioning themselves in order to have a workforce that is more productive and understands the importance and employee experience.
