Half of America's Workers In ``Vacation Crisis''; Universal Orlando Releases Findings of First ``All Work & No Play'' Study

Business Wire, May 17, 2005

ORLANDO, Fla. -- Gulf of Mexico, East Coast Workers Especially Likely to Leave Vacation Time on the Table Sacramento Leads the Way in "Vacation Maximization"

America's workers are in the midst of a vacation crisis, much of it self-imposed. About half of the nation's full-time workers didn't use all the vacation days they earned in the past year, forfeiting an average of eight vacation days each -- nearly half of the number of days available to them.

Universal Orlando Resort's first-ever "All Work & No Play" study paints a picture of a new American divide: the difference between the "Takes" and the "Take Nots." Punch your clock in Newark, Miami, or New York? Chances are you're having a compound vacation crisis; fewer vacation days available, and even fewer taken, when compared to other parts of the country. Earn your daily bread in Sacramento, Portland, or Seattle? Welcome to the land of plenty: plenty of vacation days given by employers, and plenty taken by their workers.

All told, the American workforce sacrifices the equivalent of more than three million years of unused vacation back to the nation's employers annually.

"Can you imagine your reaction if you were told in a job interview that you were expected to work eight days each year for free?" said Tom Williams, Chairman and CEO of Universal Parks and Resorts. "Yet that's what about half of the American workforce is doing. Ultimately, though, it's not just about whether you're taking full advantage of your compensation and benefits. It's about whether you're taking full advantage of life. We want people to go on vacation. If it's at Universal, great, but wherever it is, just go."

What the study found, Williams said, is a complex web of factors that influence whether a person takes what they have coming to them. For example, those surveyed who said they have to schedule all their vacation at the beginning of the year were much more likely to use all of their allotted vacation and personal days.

LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION?

Location, it turns out, is a big predictor of vacation habits, but not in ways you might suppose. Surprisingly, the residents who receive and take the least amount of vacation live right next to or within areas considered as prime vacation spots. Newark, NJ, whose residents receive and take the least amount of time off, is less than 20 miles from the country's most visited tourist destination, New York. And Miami, itself a favored beach locale, follows Newark in the rankings. The top-ranking cities for vacation deprivation are clustered around the East Coast from the Mid-Atlantic northward to New England as well as the Gulf of Mexico area. These areas are challenged by today's sluggish economy, as evidenced by Austin, Texas, at number six, recovering from the "tech wreck," to New York at number ten, suffering from high unemployment. "Areas with shaky economies tend to have businesses which have more control over their workers," said Bert Sperling of Sperling's BestPlaces who helped to conduct the study. "The implication might be that workers who have job security concerns want to be seen as indispensable to their employers; taking vacation -- in their minds -- would undermine that."

In many areas located west of the Mississippi, residents experience "vacation elation," where they receive and take a higher than average number of vacation days. These areas are less reliant on traditional industry and have more high-tech and construction work available, due in part to the current housing boom.

Regardless of the cause, says Joe Robinson, vacation advocate and author of Work to Live: The Guide to Getting a Life, not taking sufficient time off can be genuinely harmful.

REDEFINING PRODUCTIVITY

"The study reinforces the sad fact that our workaholic culture looks down on people taking their well-earned vacation time, when, in fact, the science shows that job performance increases after a vacation, because you come back recharged and rejuvenated," said Robinson. "Time off is medicine. It's as important to your health as watching your cholesterol or getting exercise. An annual vacation can cut the risk of heart disease in men by 30 percent and in women by 50 percent. It also can cure burnout. The study is a wake-up call for people to step back from the stress and take their vacation time."

THE LISTS

The Northeast: All Work & No Play - places that receive and take the
least amount of vacation days

    1. Newark, NJ

    2. Miami, FL

    3. Bergen-Passaic, NJ

    4. San Antonio, TX

    5. Atlanta, GA

    6. Austin - San Marcos, TX

    7. Charlotte - Gastonia - Rock Hill, NC

    8. Philadelphia, PA

    9. Houston, TX

   10. New York, NY

   11. Orlando, FL

   12. Norfolk- Virginia Beach- Newport News, VA

   13. Tampa- St. Petersburg- Clearwater, FL

   14. Fort Lauderdale, FL

   15. Baltimore, MD

   16. Boston, MA

   17. Washington, DC

The Wild West: Vacation Elation - places that receive and take the
most vacation days

    1. Sacramento, CA

    2. Nashville, TN

    3. Seattle - Bellevue- Everett, WA

    4. Oakland, CA

    5. San Jose, CA

    6. Riverside - San Bernardino, CA

    7. Portland - Vancouver, OR

    8. Salt Lake City - Ogden, UT

    9. Columbus, OH

   10. Denver, CO

   11. Chicago, IL

   12. Cincinnati, OH

   13. Cleveland - Lorain - Elyria, OH

   14. Phoenix - Mesa, AZ

Joe Robinson's Top Five Tips For Getting What You Deserve

    1. Don't Wait till it's too Late - Start thinking about what you
       want to do on your holiday at least six months ahead of time.
       Planning ahead commits the boss - and you - to the vacation so
       it's less likely to be postponed or scrapped at the last
       minute.

    2. Cross-train Colleagues - Train a colleague or two on your job
       so they can fill in some of your tasks while you're gone.
       You'll do the same for them. Cross-training is the secret to
       long vacations in Europe.

    3. Cut the E-Leash - Set up your e-mail with an "out of office"
       tag, and don't let any laptops, pagers or other work devices
       stow away with you. If you're in touch with the office, you're
       not on vacation.

    4. Don't Abbreviate - Push for all the time you can get. Three-day
       weekends are fine, but they're not vacations.

    5. Unpack Before You Go - Leave behind the productive work mind
       set and the guilt that goes with it. Vacations are not about
       output; they're about input - exploring, learning,
       experiencing, relaxing. Don't fill time; make it fulfilling.

For full results of the "All Work & No Play" study, visit
www.media.universalorlando.com.