A vacation, is a period of absence from a usual work, or even a specific travel or tour, generally for the purpose of vacation or recreation. Generally people spend a vacation either during special holiday observances, or on specific occasions or celebrations. Vacations are also often spent together with family or friends. While it might sound quite interesting, the truth is that vacations aren’t all about spending time with the love ones and chatting over a drink while you gaze at the beautiful landscape. They’re about exploring, enjoying, renewing your spirit and recharging your batteries.
Of course, a company cannot just hire anyone to work off-site, it has to pick the right candidate first – a person who would fill the Vacation program requirements of the company, that is. If you are an employee, your employer can’t simply decide to give you a vacation; they have to choose you first, giving you paid vacation days (if necessary) or reimbursing you for your expenses for using a company car. This ‘vacation’ period is often between seven and fourteen days, depending on the type of vacation program you are working for. In addition, certain types of vacation programs offer more vacation days or more work than others.
If you work for a company that doesn’t offer any paid vacation days, but requires you to take vacations or take time away from work for religious reasons, you might be able to get by with less than full days off. There may be health benefits offered. Also, if your doctor recommends a particular vacation spot, you might have an option to take a short vacation here or there instead of taking time away from work. So you can see how some companies might have you take short breaks rather than taking vacations. But don’t count on it; the company probably weighs the expense of your time away from work against the cost of taking time away from work.
If your company offers vacation time or paid vacations, you should know the terms and benefits. Some companies provide cash paid vacations, others require health coverage or subsidized health care, while still others reimburse you for time away from work. Many employees report difficulty in finding this out because many employers are not clear about the rules. You can avoid confusion if you ask your boss about paid vacations or health benefits when you first start working for them; if they hesitate or answer in the negative, find another company.
When considering paid vacations, it’s important to remember that they only benefit full-time employees. Part-time employees who are responsible for many daily duties may not get as much of a pay raise as their better-performing co-workers. This doesn’t mean, however, that part-time employees shouldn’t have paid vacation time at all – it’s just that they must be given it with some responsibility. For this reason, it’s usually a good idea for part-time employees to take time off whenever they feel the need, even if that means taking a week off for the entire summer. If you do choose to implement paid vacation days, make sure that your department takes them seriously.
Another way to encourage your employees to take paid vacation days is to create an atmosphere where employees have the opportunity to go on vacation whenever they want. Allow for vacation days off and a small buy-in that allows each employee to be a pestering nuisance for you until the vacation season is over. At the very least, don’t bar employees from taking time off – once vacation time arrives, they’ll be happy to return. Make it easy for them by having the large majority of employees take their entire vacation at one time. If you do this, you can avoid the “employee only” type of vacation policy and be sure that you’re truly understanding your employees’ needs.