Jobs: Vouchers for leisure titles, if employers tolerate absences

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Americans are notoriously bad at taking time off. Could the advent of the “workcation” – a journey partly spent working – help change that? US travel companies hope it can.

This will be the first year in three years that the upcoming Memorial Day holiday will kick off America’s so-called “driving season” without the deterrent of a pandemic.

Before the coronavirus broke out, workers in the US made an average of 17.4 days of vacation, according to the US Travel Association. The United States is the only OECD country that does not have national government-mandated paid holidays. The EU, on the other hand, requires at least 20 days off for all employees. UK workers are guaranteed 28 days.

Also, almost half of U.S. workers who have paid time off report not taking it all, according to the Pew Research Center.

Jobs are a trade-off popularized by the rise of hybrid work. Employers allow employees to be away from offices longer than their allotted vacation days would allow.

The downside is that workplace worries intrude on at least part of a worker’s journey. They also need to demonstrate that they aren’t cutting corners to maximize free time.

About one in four travelers have signaled their intention to work on their longest trip of the holiday season, according to findings from a Deloitte survey.

Jobs will be good news for leisure stocks if uptake is high enough. In the United States, occupancy rates are approaching pre-pandemic levels, according to the American Hotel and Lodging Association. It expects 63.8% of the country’s hotel rooms to be occupied this year, up from 43.9% in 2020 and close to 65.9% in 2019.

Shares of large hotel groups such as Hilton Hotels, Marriott International, InterContinental and Hyatt have gained between 15 and 28% so far this year. Those for home rental platform Airbnb rose 25% despite a sharp sell-off this month after warnings that the pace of growth will slow in the second quarter. Valuations, however, remain below pre-pandemic levels.

Business travel may never return to pre-pandemic levels. Workstations should help absorb some spare capacity in the travel industry. If they persist, it would be another sign that flexible working is here to stay. This requires trust on both sides – if the staff do a poor job in their rush to sightsee, all bets are off.

Lex’s team is interested in hearing more from readers. Please tell us if you think employers should be accepting the jobs in the comments section below