How far in advance do employees plan their vacations? In large companies and institutions, the vacation schedule for employees must be prepared at the beginning of the year, while in small companies, the policy may be more flexible, and management approves time off planned, for example, for the following week.
However, there are people who plan their vacations in advance. Data entered by users into the business management and accounting system Jumis indicates that the farthest vacation was scheduled for 608 days from now.
A vacation almost two years away is quite an extreme case, but overall, long-term planning is not uncommon. For example, passionate sports fans often book weekends well in advance for the World Cup or the Olympic Games, music lovers include trips to concerts of their favorite bands abroad in their long-term plans as soon as the dates for a new concert tour are announced, and participants in amateur choirs or dance groups rush to secure their time off for song and dance holidays or festivals.
However, against the backdrop of all working residents of Latvia, applying for vacation for the next year or the year after is not very popular. Statistics show that the average application submission period is 28.6 days before the intended start of vacation. The Jumis system has also recorded numerous cases where long vacations were requested just one day before the start.
"Fundamental changes in vacation planning have been brought about by modern technology. A few decades ago, employees knew little about their colleagues' plans, so at the beginning of the year it was important to present the most accurate dates for planned vacations so that HR specialists could create a reasonable vacation schedule acceptable to most employees, which would not jeopardize the company's ability to function normally. With the emergence of self-service portals for employees in the workplace, this issue is no longer as relevant. Anyone can learn about their colleagues' plans and 'book' unoccupied days when, for example, the weather forecast promises good weather. Openness reduces unnecessary competition among employees for the 'best' vacation weeks and also prevents situations where several employees from the same department request time off during the same period," reveals the advantages of modern technology Viesturs Slidinš, head of Jumis Pro.
Jumis My Assistant statistics show that vacation is approved on average 12.7 days before the start, and denied 11.5 days before. This means that managers retain the ability to monitor the situation in the company for at least a couple of days after receiving a request and make an appropriate decision.
