14 minute read
Is unlimited holiday really unlimited?
from Advocate - Issue 39
by advo
The mention of unlimited holiday has the ability to captivate even the most sceptical of workers, but is it true?
Some companies will advertise unlimited holiday when they really mean unpaid leave. This is not the same thing. Unlimited holiday in the truest sense means unlimited paid leave. An unlimited number of days off, no holiday requests and the ability to take it whenever you want – it sounds like a dream come true. But is there really such a thing as unlimited holiday – and does it work in practice?
The concept has roots in the US, largely because there is no legal entitlement to holiday, therefore holiday pay is not accrued and does not need to be paid on termination. It has recently been offered by a growing number of organisations, and is particularly prevalent in tech and start up organisations.
The real impact of unlimited holiday policies
In the UK, employers need to consider practical and legal issues such as limits on the number of days that can be taken at one time, and how and if holiday will accrue throughout the year.
In the UK, statutory leave will always accrue regardless of annual leave policies and will still need to be paid out when an employee leaves.
1) “Unlimited means infinite possibility.
There’s so much choice, that you never choose.” Most people would immediately think a company would fall apart because everyone went on a 6-month jolly. However, unlimited holiday policies generally fail because of the opposite. Put simply – most companies will find that given an unlimited holiday, employees will not take enough.
Putting a numerical value on holiday time is actually a psychological quirk of ownership. If you are given 25 days of holiday that are yours to take, you are subconsciously motivated to take them. When something is perceived as belonging to you, you immediately value it far more highly. Whereas, the lack of number – the very concept of unlimited – meant that employees potentially don’t value holiday time in the same way. In many companies where unlimited holiday policies have been trialled – and then scrapped – it was due to staff not taking their statutory entitlement (28 days). As we all know, not taking enough annual leave is a one-way ticket to burnout.
2) It opens the door to unfairness
While unlimited holiday allows individuals freedom, what many SMEs fail to consider is that holidays aren’t singularly about the individuals taking time off. It affects everyone else in their team, and everyone across the company as a whole. While someone might only take 20 days a year – someone else might feel they need 30. But when one person is away, their work needs to be covered, and it’s the person in the office who picks up the slack. The burden of deciding what unlimited means is shifted to employees. How much is too much? Is it unfair for one employee to take more holiday than another? Do we count how many days each employee takes?
IS UNLIMITED HOLIDAY REALLY UNLIMITED?
Continued from page 12.
In addition, every business is made up of different roles, with different skill sets and levels of expertise. This means there are a wide range of salaries. What this can sometimes result in, is a gap between those who can afford to take lots of holidays, and those who cannot.
3) The anxiety of not knowing the limits
Numerical limits on holiday allowance don’t just define how many days you take that year. They also help to define what is acceptable behaviour, acting as a company’s handrail, letting everyone know just where the edge is, so they can feel confident about where they stand. Unlimited holiday policies take that handrail away. For a policy that is designed to ensure everyone is at their best, they can cause anxiety – defeating the point!
4) Does unlimited ‘really’ mean unlimited?
In its essence, unlimited holiday cannot really mean unlimited, or you run the risk of implying that employees can take more time off than they spend at work! The nature of running a business means there will be times when business needs dictate that you need a full team. What unlimited holiday really means in this context, is that “We’re not counting”. Now, this is the tricky part. When using the word unlimited, managers may feel they have no grounds to deny holiday requests, even if that request goes against the needs of the business.
All in all… Does it work?
I expect a few people reading this might be looking at this policy for their own company. So, naturally, the next question is can unlimited holiday work? Ultimately, unlimited holiday schemes will only work if you have a company built on a culture of trust and shared responsibility. Your employees need to trust you, and you need to trust your employees. The practicalities of each job should be considered too – for example, it wouldn’t work for a job involving shift work, or manufacturing and production.
Larger companies like Netflix and LinkedIn have obviously found a way to make it work, but I think many SMEs and start up’s would struggle to manage such a policy. I think the system of unlimited holiday places too much emphasis on employees to make the right call, which in itself can cause anxiety and counteracts the whole initiative.
Overall, it is clear that the concept of unlimited holiday could be an effective initial employee attraction and engagement tool. In practice, any policy needs to be crafted carefully and the starting point is to ensure employees take their statutory minimum holiday entitlements. After these legal requirements, where you go from there is up to you! A sensible approach could be to give employees a baseline entitlement with a minimum number of days, and then offer discretionary unlimited holiday on top. Or consider a limited, but generous holiday entitlement as standard. Any such policy should have clear guidance to ensure it is not abused and performance remains unaffected. For companies with the management capacity to do so, any entitlement to unlimited holidays could be linked to key performance indicators. The policy could also include the right to remove unlimited holiday in the event of performance issues.
If you would like to discuss this further or require guidance regarding any holiday policy or have a query regarding holidays, the HR team at advo are happy to help.
HOLIDAY PAY
WHO IS ENTITLED?
UK law states that all workers must receive 5.6 weeks leave, including bank holidays. Employers can offer more entitlement.
Workers/employees can take a week’s pay for each week of statutory leave they take. This is calculated based on the hours they work and how they’re paid for those hours:
• Fixed contractual hours and pay, they receive their pay for a week • Fixed contractual hours, but their rate of pay varies (commission or piece work), they receive their average hourly rate of pay from the previous 52 weeks multiplied by their fixed hours • Variable hours and variable pay (workers that do regular overtime), they receive their average hourly rate of pay multiplied by the average number of hours they have worked per week, calculated on the last 52 weeks before the holiday • No fixed hours (casual work, including zero-hours contracts), the average pay from the previous 52 weeks is used for the calculation.
Employers please remember – The 52 week period should only include weeks for which the worker was working. Do not include any week that the worker did not work.
PASSWORD
IMPORTANCE
The UK has become a hotspot for scamming and hacking over the last few years. It’s no surprise that 1 in 5 people (22%) have had their data compromised! As advo is a Cyber Essentials and ISO 27001 accredited company, we do know a thing or two about passwords.
According to a new survey by USwitch, Brits admit to the following password fails:
• 25.3% write their passwords down on paper • 30% of people use their birth year • 39% use a pet’s name as part of their password • Use your keyboard as a canvas to draw or write something memorable to you. • Use lowercase, uppercase, numbers, and symbols in every password. • Change your password regularly! We’d recommend every 3 months at minimum. Password don’ts:
The key problem with using a birth year or pets name as part of your password is social media! Particularly the likes of quizzes, which sometimes require you to input such information to find out ‘What kind of vegetable you are’.
The most secure passwords avoid the use of ANY personal identifying information – as this info will be the first thing hackers try. Outlined below are some simple safety and security tips around passwords to help keep accounts secure:
Password dos:
• Spell out a memorable phrase using a mix of numbers, symbols, and acronyms:
Example: T3rRy550c1alMed!Ac1234 (Terrys Social Media Account) • You can do the above to customise your password for each site. • Don’t write your password down. Not on paper, not in an email, not anywhere! • Don’t reuse passwords across accounts. • Avoid using loved ones or pets’ names, or your birthday • Avoid using memorable keyboard paths.
Example: 123456, qwerty. • Don’t tell anyone your password.
Its obvious people are still making simple mistakes when it comes to choosing a password. As most of our lives are now stored online, having a strong password is the first line of defence against hackers.
Many people revert to using the same one on repeat, which leads to poor password strength, and a free pass to all of your logins (personal and work!) and your personal information to a hacker.
FOUR DAY
WORKING WEEK
A four-day working week is great for some, but not for all , we take a closer look at the pros and cons
Four day working week trials are becoming increasingly popular, with trials in Iceland, Belgium, and now the UK. These shifts to a fourday working week are, in principle, challenging the rigid five-day week that has been widely accepted for decades.
The main issue with these trials is that they focus on maintaining 100% productivity from employees with 20% less work time. This could lead to higher levels of stress during those four days, as employees fight to ensure tasks are completed. Wilson Fletcher, a consultancy business, has operated a four-day week for the last three years.
CEO Mark Wilson said “The key to this model is understanding why you are doing it. We don’t ask staff to do five day’s work in four, we’re not trying to compress the week. This in itself means staff do not feel stressed. According to Wilson, a successful four-day week is all down to management. He argues having each Friday off is giving back flexibility to staff, as they have more time to do “life stuff” on the additional day off. For the 87% who want to work flexibly following the pandemic, this is a big step. However, for those working around school hours, or who have disabilities, mental health challenges or other long-term illnesses, and those with caring responsibilities – this approach is as inflexible as it is flexible. Many employees believe the four-day working week model is biased in favour of people with children, and research shows that hybrid working options tend to be favoured in this group.
Flexible working in the truest sense negates the need for flexible working requests or four day working week policies. A truly flexible approach is about removing barriers for those who need flexibility, and supporting them in securing a healthy work-life balance. We already know that flex working can be life changing – it can let people into the workforce that would otherwise not be able. It’s argued as being a driver towards closing the gender pay gap, and a way that we can genuinely challenge inclusivity and diversity in the workplace. There are also well-documented significant business benefits. Research from CIPD tells us that when people work flexibly, they are more loyal to the company, report greater job satisfaction, and can generate more revenue (43%) because they are more engaged vs less engaged staff (20%).
People with long-term health conditions and caring responsibilities have reduced absence, and can better manage these and work effectively. Flexible working is the number one motivator in the workplace (89%), more so than financial incentives (77%). Flexibility can also reduce staff turnover.
It’s important to recognise and celebrate that it has never been a more exciting time for flexible working. Companies have seen what can be gained from flexible working, and are ripping up and rewriting their flexibility rulebooks. Recognising that we can work differently and be more productive is great, but it’s important to consider that flexible working looks different for everyone. This means that a four-day working week will be brilliant for some, but not for others.
If you are thinking about implementing a four-day working week or compressed hours working, there are a number of considerations in terms of fairness and compliance with employment legislation and correct holiday allocation to be addressed.
To ensure that any such implementation is successful, please contact the HR team at advo.
VOLUNTEER LEAVE
SOME OF THE ‘INS & OUTS’
Research also tells us that volunteering has been shown to be beneficial to the mental health of individuals. Helping others can help people feel good about themselves and can improve self-esteem and therefore supports the health and wellbeing of your team.
There is no statutory right for paid or unpaid time off for volunteer leave, other than specific public duties, e.g. a magistrate etc. Implementing volunteer leave is about doing the right thing and there are so many benefits for all parties involved:
• Satisfaction felt by employees and improved mental health
• Attracts new recruits
• Can help employees develop skills and be good for personal development
• Improve employee engagement
• Positive brand reputation for employers and a way for the employer to develop kudos and help their community • Underpin an employer’s social and corporate responsibility ethos
• Provide a charity with access to skills otherwise inaccessible to them.
To implement a Volunteer Leave Policy, there would be some planning involved and advo would recommend considering the following:
VOLUNTEER LEAVE
SOME OF THE ‘INS & OUTS’
• Which charities/community groups do you wish to support and focus your volunteering efforts?
advo would suggest that, ideally, you choose causes that best align with your vision and values. However, to gain ownership and engagement, you may wish to ask employees to submit their wishes as there may be a charitable cause that is close to employees’ hearts. Or you could select a few charities and cast a vote!
The charity that you wish to support may also change in an annual or bi-annual.
• Who would be the right person to lead any charity campaigns and employee engagement?
This is key to success – the right person should be organised and be infectiously enthusiastic! They would also need the time outside of their normal duties to focus on such engagement.
• How much volunteering time, in addition to annual leave, would be in your volunteer policy?
Some companies allow up to 3 days a year but it is your decision.
• Would voluntary leave be paid or unpaid?
Unpaid leave may not encourage as much engagement! We would suggest using a range of communications channels, both internally and externally, to share the successes of your volunteering programmes and stories. This is positive and engaging news delivering a sense of achievement and everyone know that you are not just all about company profit – you care too.
A major key to success is the buy-in of the senior leadership team and management. This helps show that this is heartfelt and genuine and is supported from the top.
Don’t forget to include your social commitment and volunteer policy within your recruitment campaigns to help attract candidates.
Here at advo we support Porchlight, a Kent based charity for homeless and vulnerable people. We encourage our employees to participate in our many charitable events, e.g. from tombola’s, raffles and to giving paid time off during working hours for our employees to support in the raising of donations, e.g. training for the London and Brighton marathons etc.
If you are interested in implementing a volunteering policy, advo can support you.
