Let’s face it: your employees are human beings, not robots. They need time to rest and relax, which means that they need a break from time to time. Maybe you offer time off to your employees, but they don’t seem to want to take it. As a boss or a manager, maybe you’re completely fine with your employees taking some time off for a vacation (or stay-cation due to COVID), but does your team know that? Here are a few of the benefits of employees taking time off and a few ways you can encourage your employees to do so.
The benefits of time off for your employees
Taking time off can actually help improve your team’s productivity. Of course, you might have to do some scheduling to make sure that you’re not totally short-staffed, but all in all when your employees are well-rested and relaxed they’re going to be able to get more done. Like we said, your team is composed not of super robots, but humans. And humans need time to give their brains and bodies a break, or else they tend to get a bit burned out … and that’s not good. People can get physically and mentally drained. Everyone (you included!) needs the chance to get away from the workplace for a while.
Another thing to consider is that if your team is encouraged to take time off, that gives your other employees the opportunity to step into their role and learn or practice new skills if they have to pick up some of the responsibilities. (And that can make a nice change for them, too – it can give a real boost to be able to work on something different for a change of pace.)
Plus, encouraging time off or flexible hours might result in your employees taking fewer sick days. And when they are in the office, they might work more efficiently and be able to get more done.
How to encourage your employees to take time off.
Society seems to think that everyone needs to be workaholics, so your employees might be a bit wary or leery of taking the time off that’s offered to them. Here are a few ways that you can encourage your employees to take advantage of their time off allowances or their flexible schedule.
Tell them about it.
You can tell your employees all about the time-off policy or the flexible scheduling you offer. Make sure they’re aware of it, and then let them know why you want them to use their time off. They need to understand that you see them as humans who need a break every now and then and who have personal lives that need to be balanced with their work lives.
Be creative with scheduling.
Okay, it’s true that it would probably be pretty stressful if everyone were to decide to take off at once. So create a way that you rotate time off, if possible. That way the employees who are in the office or workplace don’t get overwhelmed and the employee who just wants to take some time off doesn’t feel guilty for doing so. Maybe all that’s needed is a certain amount of advance notice about time off days. Anyways, figure out a system that works for your business and tell your employees about it. (And of course, understand that sometimes things come up at the last minute and might require an employee to be out.)
Embrace cross-training.
You can lay the foundation for a healthy time-off culture at your business simply by cross-training your team. If you have employees who can step in to help out while one of their teammates is out, that’s less stressful for you and for the person who needs some time off. (They’ll know that their work is being handled and that they don’t have to fret. You want your employees to actually enjoy their time out of the office, after all, and really be able to rest and relax.)
The goal is to get to a place where your team feels like they can take time off without feeling like they’re going to be scowled at. You don’t want anyone to fear speaking up to let you know that they’re taking a break. This can help your team feel happier and more energized at their jobs, which is good for everyone involved — you, your employees, and your business as a whole.
Get insurance quotes.
Now, something that might make you want to take time off to run away from the office is getting business insurance quotes. You might be fearing it and you might not want to deal with it. We get that, which is why our team really strives to make insurance easy. (And we also strive to help businesses save money on their insurance.) You can get in touch with us to get started on your quotes by filling out our online form, giving us a call, or messaging us.
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