A third (34%) of employers are prepared to cancel someone’s holiday if there is too much work to do in the office, according to research from recruitment company Adecco. A third of employers (31%) also stated that that they would cancel an employees’ holiday solely for a business reason.
Over a third (37%) of employers also have a ‘use it or lose it’ approach to holiday leave meaning employees can’t roll holiday over.
Whilst employers admit to struggling when employees are on holiday, a third (31%) still do not have appropriate systems in place to find adequate cover. 90% of employers cover holidays within the team.
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The health sector is the least prepared when it comes to holidays with three-quarters (75%) admitting to have struggled when employees have been on leave.
However, nine in ten (87%) employers do believe that holiday leave makes employees more efficient.
According to Alex Fleming, Managing Director at Adecco Retail:
“It is surprising that such a high number of employers regularly struggle with holiday leave without doing anything to combat the problem. Despite recognising the benefits that holidays bring to their workforce, a significant proportion are still willing to cancel this if need be. This unsurprisingly does not resonate well with employees who must not only pick up the additional workload when their colleagues are away, but also risk their own leave being cancelled and often not rolled over.
“Employers must ensure they empower employees by clarifying their expectations, making it clear that employees should give plenty of notice for holiday requests. Good planning and forward thinking will help prevent team members having to pick up the extra workload and foster a happier workplace. “
