Almost three quarters of Irish workers have abandoned plans for a summer holiday because of the recession, a survey claimed today.
The stress and pressure of work combined with tighter budgets left 73% of employees too broke for a trip abroad and making plans to stay at home.
According to employment law firm Peninsula Ireland only a quarter of workers have booked a foreign holiday.
Alan Price, managing director of Peninsula Ireland, warned that cancelling holiday plans could hit staff morale hard.
“All employees need a break, they need time away from the workplace and summer holidays are an ideal opportunity to recharge batteries,” he said.
“If Irish workers cannot afford to get abroad then they should look at spending some quality time away from work, whether they spend this time at home or take a short break within Ireland.”
The Peninsula Ireland survey, which questioned 1,060 workers during May, found only 26% of employees have already booked a foreign holiday this year.
Mr Price said: “The economic downturn is forcing employees to forgo taking a summer holiday and this is potentially bad for staff morale and can create long term problems for a business.”
The poll also found workplace pressures have soared during the downturn with just under half of employees surveyed claiming stress has become a bigger issue in the last year.
“Stress levels seem to be on the increase, an exhausted worker is not good for a business,” Mr Price said.
“They can make mistakes, create safety problems especially if they operate machinery, tempers flare, morale is damaged.
“It’s obvious that everyone is working that little harder but common sense needs to be applied by both the worker and the employer, so managing stress should be considered a priority.”
Peninsula Ireland also urged employers to play their part in encouraging staff to take a break or at least take advantage of statutory holiday entitlement.
“Tired and stressed workers do not make a productive business. Employees want to make sure that their job remains safe; many of the respondents we spoke to were willing to forgo their holiday entitlement so they could remain competitive at work,” Mr Price said.
“They wish to keep ahead of the game and prove their worthiness whilst putting the business first.
“However, whilst these are difficult times employees are encouraged to recharge their batteries, take a break from time to time and input renewed energy back into the job.”