"Telepressure": Two thirds of working people can't switch off on vacation
Vacations are meant for relaxation, but a few vacationers will probably still check their e-mails or take calls while on the island.
Lying in the hammock and... Check your emails?
(Image: Song_about_summer/Shutterstock.com)
Vacations are supposed to be for relaxation, but according to a Bitkom survey, two thirds of working people can still be reached by their employer during their summer vacation, and the situation was similar during the last Christmas vacations. The older you are, the more accessible you are: in the age group of 16 to 29-year-old professionals who want to go on vacation, just over half (51%) say they intend to be reachable. Of the 50 to 64-year-olds, 73 percent said they wanted to be available for work during their summer vacation. Only a third (31%) want to switch off completely and not answer any work-related inquiries.
Reachable for boss, colleagues and customers
59% of respondents said that their boss expects them to be available, while 51% said that their colleagues expect this. 46% are available for customers and a quarter for business partners. 15 percent want to be available on their own initiative during their summer vacation.
A third (65%) of employees can be reached by phone and a third (65%) by text message. Business emails are answered or read by 29%. A quarter (23%) can also be reached for video calls. 11 percent use collaboration tools such as Microsoft Teams or Slack. In the representative Bitkom survey of 1005 people aged 16 and over, including 357 professionals planning to go on vacation this year.
"Telepressure" can lead to burnout
"Vacation should only be interrupted in an emergency. Employers are responsible for organizing substitute solutions in good time and agreeing clear internal rules for availability during absences," says Bitkom CEO Dr. Bernhard Rohleder. Since the coronavirus crisis and the associated increase in working from home, employees have been able to be reached anytime and anywhere to quickly check an email. As part of a long-term study, researchers from "social health@work" also came to similar conclusions. In this context, the researchers speak of "telepressure". This refers to the pressure that employees feel to be constantly available and to respond quickly to work requests – even in their spare time.
(mack)
