Workers Feel Need to Stay Connected During Summer Vacation

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Summer vacation may be calling, but so might your boss. A mobile messaging study, conducted by Osterman Research and commissioned by Neverfail, Ltd, found that 79 percent of respondents admitted to taking their work-related device with them on vacation.

According to Osterman Research,  41 percent of survey respondents admit to being email “packrats”. “It comes as no surprise that many workers are packing their email to come along with them on vacation, ensuring that they won’t return to an overwhelming pile of email upon their return to the office.”

Many factors seem to play into this trend. One is our constantly connected culture, another, according to CareerBuilder’s 2009 vacation survey, is that nearly one in five workers fear losing their jobs if they go on vacation or feel guilty being away from the office. The recession is another factor pushing workers to go to extreme measures to check email. The Mobile Messaging Study reveals that more than one-third of respondents admit to hiding from friends and family to check email while on vacation, and nearly half admitted to traveling up to 10 miles just to check email during a vacation.

Michael Osterman, president of Osterman Research believes that: “Mobile messaging has become crucial to businesses and employees alike, but constant access to email makes it difficult for some workers to unwind.”

Is this a desirable trend? I know that as more people opt to stay connected during off-hours or vacation, the more it will become expected, and the rest of us will start to feel the pressure. As Osterman points out: “Mobile access to email is certainly a critical aspect of how we do business now, but it is important to remember that there is a time and place for everything.”