Fear of Being Fired Has Killed the American Vacation怕遭解雇讓美國人不敢休假

Americans aren’t taking vacations—and it’s not because they can’t afford them. Instead， a steady stream of research over the past decade has revealed that Americans fear taking a vacation from work will make them appear less than dedicated to their employer.

美國人不休假——不是因為他們休不起假。其實，過去十年不斷有研究表明，美國人擔心休假讓他們看起來并未全心全意地對雇主盡忠。

Whether it results in them not using vacation time or coming to the office when sick， research has shown that U.S. employees are afraid to be out of the office.

無論結果是美國人不休假還是帶病堅持上班，總之研究表明美國員工害怕不上班。

U.S. workers are hesitant to take paid time off

美國員工不愿帶薪休假

A study conducted by OnePoll1 on behalf of Learn to Live2 revealed that 50 percent of U.S. workers hesitate to take time off for their mental health， fearing what their employers would think. Further， 62 percent of respondents went as far as to say they feel their boss would judge them for doing so. As a result， 54 percent feel poor mental health isn’t a “good enough reason” to use paid time off （PTO）.

民調公司“萬普”受數字心理健康公司“學會生活”委托展開了一項調研，結果顯示50%的美國員工不愿因為心理疾病請假，害怕雇主有意見。此外，62%的受訪者甚至說，他們覺得如果因心理疾病休假，老板會對他們指指點點。結果，54%的員工認為心理健康問題并非帶薪休假的“充分理由”。

Another survey by Pew Research found that 46 percent of U.S. workers take less time off than their employers offer. Additionally， 49 percent of respondents said they fear falling behind in work， while 43 percent said they’d “feel badly” that their colleagues would have to pick up their slack3. Additionally， 21 percent of Black workers say the reason they take fewer days off is due to the risk of losing their jobs. On the flip side4， this is the case for only 13 percent of white workers.

另一項由皮尤研究中心所做的調研發現，46%的美國員工實際休假的時間少于雇主提供的假期。此外，49%的受訪者說他們擔心工作進度落后，而43%的受訪者說他們會“感到不安”，因為同事不得不接手他們的工作。此外，21%的黑人員工表示，他們較少休假的原因是擔心失去工作。反觀這一比例在白人員工中僅為13%。

Previous research on taking a vacation

先前關于休假的研究

The phenomenon of U.S. workers’ hesitation to take their PTO is nothing new—research from the past decade or so shows how firmly entrenched it is.

美國員工不愿帶薪休假并非什么新現象——過去十年左右的研究表明，這種情況已根深蒂固。

In a 2012 survey from workforce consulting firm Right Management5， 70 percent of employees said they weren’t using all their earned vacation days. Around the same time， research from JetBlue Airways6 discovered that most employees left an average of 11 vacation days on the table， or 70 percent of their allotted time off.

在專事勞動力咨詢的睿仕管理咨詢公司于2012年所做的調查中，70%的員工說沒休完自己理應享受的假。大致同一時期，捷藍航空的調查也發現，大多數員工平均剩余11天假未休，也就是額定休假天數的70%。

Michael Haid， former senior vice president of talent management at Right Management， said at the time that the prevailing environment at many organizations recognized devotion to the job at the exclusion of nearly everything else.

睿仕管理咨詢有限公司前人才管理高級副總裁邁克爾·海德當時表示，許多組織盛行的企業文化只強調敬業與否，幾乎不顧其他一切。

“Whether this culture is real or imagined， employees everywhere are forsaking vacations and even family time for the primacy of work，” Haid explained.

“無論這種文化是真實存在的還是臆想出來的，各地的員工都因為將工作放在首位而舍棄假期甚至與家人共享的時光。”海德解釋說。

John de Graaf is the former president of Take Back Your Time， an organization focused on challenging society’s epidemic of overwork， overscheduling and time famine. He said times of recession amplify employees’ concerns that being out of the office will be seen as not giving it their all.

約翰·德格拉夫是“奪回你的時間”的前主席，該組織致力于解決工作過度、行程過滿和時間饑荒等廣泛存在的社會問題。德格拉夫表示，經濟衰退時期，員工更加擔憂不上班會被視為沒有為工作竭盡全力。

“You have this kind of fear of not wanting to be seen as a slacker，” de Graaf noted.

“于是就有了這種不想被當成工作逃兵的擔心。”德格拉夫指出。

Even back in 2011， many employees felt uneasy about leaving their work behind when on vacation. In a 2011 study from virtual office company Regus7， 66 percent of surveyed employees said they would check and respond to work email during their time off， and 29 percent expected to attend meetings virtually while on vacation.

即使回到2011年，許多員工也會為休假致使工作進度落后而感到不安。根據虛擬辦公公司“雷格斯”2011年的一項研究，66%的受訪員工表示他們會在休假期間查收并回復工作郵件，29%的人希望在休假期間參加視頻會議。

HR consequences of employees not taking vacation

員工不休假對人力資源的影響

While some companies encourage employees to use their earned time off， de Graaf explained that many businesses aren’t worried about the potential repercussions8 of the nose-to-the-grindstone9 approach. “They think， ‘If I burn someone out， I can always find someone else，’” de Graaf said. “They think [employees] are expendable.”

德格拉夫分析說，盡管有些公司鼓勵員工利用他們理應享受的帶薪假期，但也有許多企業對持續辛勤工作可能導致的不良后果并不擔心。“他們認為，‘如果我把一個員工累垮了，我總能找到替換的員工。’”德格拉夫說，“他們認為（員工）是消耗品。”

On its own， forgoing a few days off may not be significant， Haid said. But when so many people think they shouldn’t take the time they’re entitled to， problems arise.

海德表示，如果孤立地看，舍棄幾天假期可能影響不大。但有這么多人認為他們不該休自己有權去休的假，那就成問題了。

Consequences could include unnecessary turnover， low employee retention， absenteeism10， frequent health or safety claims， and a host of other HR issues.

后果可能包括非必要的人員調整、員工留用率低、經常無故缺勤、健康或安全索賠頻發，以及許多其他人力資源問題。

Why employees taking vacation is a good thing

為何員工休假是好事？

Carrie Bulger， professor and former chair of the psychology department at Quinnipiac University， agreed that it’s a mistake for businesses to think that employees skimping on11 their vacation time is a good thing. With rundown employees comes decreased productivity and increased healthcare costs for the company.

昆尼皮亞克大學心理學系教授、前系主任卡麗·巴爾杰也認為，企業把員工縮短休假時間當成好事是個錯誤。員工疲憊不堪，公司的生產力就會下降、醫保成本就會上升。

“When we are tired， we are not performing at our best，” Bulger explained. “Also， people tend to be more sick when they are exhausted.”

“我們在疲倦時，無法達到最佳工作狀態。”巴爾杰解釋道，“另外，人們在精疲力竭時更容易生病。”

A Concordia University study suggests insecurity could play a role in employees’ determination to make it into the office. In the study， employees who admitted to being insecure in their jobs were more likely to attend work while sick—making them present in body but not in spirit， which is known as presenteeism12.

康考迪亞大學的一項研究表明，不安全感可能會影響員工上班的決心。在這項研究中，承認自己有職業危機感的員工更有可能帶病上班，結果是他們人雖在場但心不在焉，這就是所謂的“假性出勤”。

Surveyed employees reported trekking into the office while sick three times over six months. For comparison， they called in sick and stayed home only about 1.5 days during that period.

受訪員工反映說，他們六個月內有三次拖著病體艱難地去上班。相比之下，他們在那六個月里請病假居家休養的時間只有一天半左右。

Bulger said such presenteeism actually ends up costing companies more than absenteeism. “It’s about being at your max，” Bulger noted.

巴爾杰認為，比起經常無故缺勤，這種假性出勤其實終會讓公司付出更大代價。“關鍵是員工要達到最佳狀態。”巴爾杰特別指出。

How to approach taking a vacation

如何落實員工休假

Both you and your team deserve a break—and the HR consequences of not taking a vacation show it. To encourage employees to take vacations， consider the following actions：

你和你的團隊都應該休息一下——不休假對人力資源的負面影響證明了這一點。為了鼓勵員工休假，可以考慮以下措施：

● Acknowledge your employees’ need for vacation time.

· 認可員工的休假需求。

● Allow employees to carry over accrued vacation days from one year to the next.

· 允許員工將累積的休假天數結轉到下一年。

● Build a process through which team members can cover for employees taking time off.

· 建立替補流程，確保員工休假期間團隊的其他成員及時補位。

● Regularly remind employees of deadlines for holiday requests.

· 定期提醒員工休假申請的截止時間。

● Show interest in your employees’ vacation plans.

· 關心員工的休假計劃。

● Clearly explain your PTO policies when creating an employee handbook.

· 編制員工手冊時闡明公司的帶薪休假規定。

● Promote a healthy work-life balance as part of your positive company culture.

· 提倡健康的工作-生活平衡，使之成為積極的企業文化的一部分。

● Lead by example and take vacations of your own.

· 老板以身作則，自己要休假。

That last step might be the most important. Small business owners can and should take vacations. Sure， a vacation may seem out of reach when you theoretically must be available at any time. But not taking a break now can lead to burnout later. And then you truly can’t be available. A little time off now can mean more time on later.

最后一個措施可能是最重要的。小企業主可以休假，也應該休假。當然，如果理論上你必須隨時待命，休假可能就遙不可及了。但現在不休息可能會造成以后精疲力竭。到那時你就真的無法再工作了。現在稍作休整，以后就會有更多時間工作。

Encouraging time off

鼓勵休假

Many workers avoid taking time off because they fear judgment and repercussions. However， this mindset can be damaging. Time off—whether used for a mental health day or a vacation with loved ones—is a necessary perk， and employees should feel comfortable taking advantage of it.

許多員工不敢休假，因為他們害怕受到批評和產生不良影響。然而，這種心態可能是有害的。休假——不管是為了心理健康還是與親友共度假日——是必不可少的福利，員工理應坦然休假。

As an employer， do your part by encouraging your workers to take full advantage of their PTO， reassuring them that they won’t be punished or viewed differently for doing so. This attitude will lead to a healthier company culture and more motivated employees.

身為雇主，你應盡己所能鼓勵員工充分利用他們的帶薪休假，確保他們不會因休假而遭受處罰或異樣目光。有了這樣的態度，公司就能擁有更健康的企業文化和更有干勁的員工。

（譯者為“《英語世界》杯”翻譯大賽獲獎者）

1美國一家知名的民調公司，為全球客戶提供市場調研及數據分析。現已更名為Talker Research，此處按原名音譯為“萬普”。" 2美國一家專注數字心理健康的公司，服務已覆蓋美國、英國、德國等多個國家，擁有超過1000萬的用戶。此處直譯為“學會生活”。

3 pick up sb’s slack接手某人停下的工作。" 4 on the flip side另一方面，相反地。" 5一家全球領先的企業管理咨詢公司，為萬寶盛華集團（Manpower Group）旗下全資子公司。

6美國一家廉價航空公司，主要營運美國內陸航線和來往加勒比海、巴哈馬和百慕大的國際航線。

7一家全球領先的辦公空間解決方案供應商，提供虛擬辦公室、專業會議室和視頻會議工作室等多種服務。" 8 repercussion（尤指間接、深遠且在意料之外的）影響；（不良）后果。" 9 nose-to-the-grindstone持續辛勤工作的。" 10 absenteeism（尤指無故或一貫的）曠工；曠課。

11 skimp on節省。" 12 presenteeism假性出勤，指員工人雖到崗，但工作效率低下的現象。