Yorkregion.com - Leisure - Give yourself a break
Give yourself a break
How was your vacation this past summer? Better question: did you even take one?
If you’re like many Canadians, you didn’t take advantage of most of the vacation time to which you are entitled.
Estimates are up to two-thirds of Canadians didn’t use any vacation time in the summer, while many who did continued to check in with the office during their time off.
Several explanations are offered for this reluctance to take a break from the daily grind, including fear of the office falling apart while on holiday, dread of the immense workload waiting upon return, guilt about leaving work behind and worry about losing a job while away.
The negative effects of prolonged periods of work without vacation time, such as stress, strained relationships and adverse health consequences, are well documented; the benefits in health and productivity gained from enjoying a long-needed holiday cannot be overstated.
Yet Canadians lag far behind our European co-workers in the amount of vacation days offered by employers; the average worker receives just two weeks, or 10 days, paid vacation when hired. In comparison, most European countries offer a minimum 20 days paid holiday.
The Canadian Labour Congress is now lobbying the federal government to legislate a minimum of 10 paid statutory holidays and three weeks vacation in the hope Canadians, already in danger of becoming stressed-out workaholics, will take advantage of some extra time off.