'Workcations' blur line between work and leisure for many Americans, survey finds
More than two-thirds of employees say their work and leisure time have blended in recent years.
The changing work and leisure habits of Americans have resulted in a new term: “workcations”. The rise in remote work spurred by technology and boosted by the pandemic enables more of the workforce to combine work and pleasure.
JobSage recently surveyed more than 1,000 workers to see how they felt about the concept:
- More than half of Americans don’t like the concept of workcations.
- More than two-thirds of employees say their work and leisure time have blended in recent years.
- The same percentage assumes that if a coworker is on workcation they’re not working as hard.
Although workcations may seem glamorous, they often stem from more mundane realities. For example, almost half of employees have opted for a workcation instead of a real vacation because they couldn’t take time off. Nearly the same number (45%) say their vacations have gotten shorter in recent years because of work pressure.
More than 8 in 10 have worked during a regular vacation, nearly three-quarters have checked work-related apps on vacation simply out of habit and nearly two-thirds have worked from a plane, car or train on the way to or from vacation.
More than a quarter of Americans say they would opt for a workcation because it’s easier than taking time off, but more positive reasons also come into play. When asked to provide motivating factors for a workcation, the number one answer given was “good for my health” (34%). Other top responses included “enabling more travel” (29%) and “good for my work” (25%).
For those who have concerns about workcations, the most common was not wanting to blend work and travel (30%). Around 1 in 5 mentioned the cost of travel (20%) and responsibilities at home (17%). Only 8% of workers say their employers wouldn’t allow them to take a workcation.
Although the majority of employers approve of (or at least tolerate) workcations, it appears that coworkers don’t always feel the same way. Two-thirds of Americans assume that colleagues taking a workcation aren’t working as hard. When talking about themselves, however, 62% say they can maintain a high quality of work on a workcation.
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Although simple jealousy may play a role in this mindset, it also may be a question of time. Many employees had never worked remotely until the pandemic, and it may take some time for attitudes to catch up. As employees see evidence that coworkers can be productive on vacation (and perhaps take some workcations themselves), they may start to change their minds, the report concludes.