Research by Eagle Hill Consulting, an unconventional management consulting firm, found that a large proportion of US government officials do not take vacations, mainly because of the costs and self-imposed pressures.
Thirty-six percent of workers surveyed reported that they had not taken vacation in the last 12 months, with a higher trend among younger and lower-income workers.
Findings such as burnout in the government workforce remain high, with 52% of government employees saying they are burned out, which is higher than the level of burnout (46%) across our entire workforce, according to data from the consultancy. .
“When half of your workforce reports burnout, it is very important for the mission of the agency that employees fully disconnect from work, rest and recharge. But that is not an easy task given the large number of public affairs that remain vacant and the growing demand for government services,” said Melissa Jezior, President and CEO of Hill Consulting.
“Part of the solution is to establish a culture where disconnection from work is not only accepted, but expected and encouraged. Public servants are mission driven and push themselves to keep working. This way leaders need to set an example by taking time off and not constantly checking email and joining virtual meetings on vacation,” said Jezior.
Interest was discovered;
· 36% of government employees say they haven’t taken a vacation in the past year, with higher rates among younger (45%) and low-income (51%) employees.
· 56% say they completely disconnect from work on holidays, while 27% report checking email and working messages.
· Government workers say barriers to taking full-time vacation include:
– The cost of taking a vacation, 48%
– Imposed pressure as with work, 35%
– Heavy workload, 24%
– No colleagues available for their workload, 22%
– Unpaid days, 17%
The findings are based on the Mount Eagle Consulting 2023 Work Burnout Survey by Ipsos from February 9-13, 2023. The survey included 1,001 respondents from a random sample of employers in the US, including 475 federal, state and local government employees.
