14 DAY TRIAL // Back when some of us were growing up or even as recently as 5 years ago, going on a summer holiday was still seen as a perfect opportunity to break off from work completely and just use the time to recharge one’s batteries, as much of a cliché as that may sound. Times have changed, though, with a new survey cited by the Daily Mail saying that, today, managers come back from their holiday even more stressed and anxious than they were before leaving.
A solution to this predicament would be, obviously, to not go on vacation in the first place, especially if it places so much pressure and stress on them. Another, more practical one would be, however, to see a holiday for what it is, and to leave at home all the gadgets and other devices that enable them to take their work with them. Whether managers will ever be able to do that again is, of course, an entirely different matter.
“Devices such as the BlackBerry and iPhone mean they can never escape the onslaught of emails, even while they are supposed to be enjoying a break. Some are even going into work during their holiday, according to a survey from the Institute of Leadership and Management. The findings of the research, which polled nearly 2,500 managers, offer a tragic insight into the impact of technology on today’s workers. It warns the idea that the annual summer holiday is a time to ‘switch off and unwind’ is rapidly disappearing,” the Mail informs.
“Of the third of those polled who work while on holiday, 80 per cent ‘frequently’ respond to emails, nearly 50 per cent take phone calls and 10 per cent go into the office. More than two-thirds of people who own a BlackBerry or a smart-phone say they check it ‘at least once a day, if not more.’ A shocking 40 per cent of all managers told researchers that they return to work feeling ‘more anxious’ than before they left. Professor Cary Cooper, from the Lancaster University Management School, said the problem has been worsened because employees are so worried about losing their job that they are falling victim to the culture of ‘presenteeism’,” the publication further notes.
While some may find this attempt at “presenteeism” admirable, it can have quite devastating consequences, the Professor warns. For one, not being able to take some time off (literally, not just on paper) will impact one’s health sooner or later. Secondly, it will also affect one’s family because, as the Cooper puts it, if you can’t spend time with your family on your holiday, “when the hell can you?”
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