More than 1.6m holiday days lost by Irish workers in 2020, survey says
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Fáiltie Ireland is encouraging Irish workers to take domestic breaks in autumn and winter after it was revealed that more than 1.6m holiday days were lost by Irish workers in 2020.
According to a survey, carried out by Red C on behalf of the tourism authority, almost half (46%) of Irish workers didn't take all of their annual leave days last year.
The research also shows that 33% of workers will not, or are unsure if they will use up all their holiday days for this year either.
More than 10% of employees surveyed say they lost days, meaning they weren't able to carry their annual leave through to 2021 or get paid in lieu.
On average, seven days were lost by this group for the year, which if added up comes to 1,660,837 annual leave days lost across the population.
Fáilte Ireland is encouraging people to use their annual leave to "keep discovering Ireland" in the coming months with family or friends, or even just to "relax, unwind and switch off".
"Ireland has so many great places to visit and amazing experiences to enjoy," says Niall Tracey, director of marketing with Fáilte Ireland.
"Why not use one day of your annual leave and turn a weekend into a long weekend? Or take 3 or 4 days and head away for a midweek break?
"Ireland has so much to offer.”
Clinical psychologist Dr David Coleman says taking time off for holidays is important for people's overall wellbeing and has been proven to have enormous benefits.
"Research shows that holidays can improve mood and reduce stress, combating things like depression and anxiety," Dr Coleman says.
"Even short breaks have been shown to reduce perceived stress and reduce the stress hormone cortisol.”
Fáilte Ireland's campaign has been encouraging people to holiday in Ireland throughout the summer as the country emerged from the last Covid-19 pandemic lockdown.
The authority says it will continue this campaign rolling into autumn, with the hopes of getting workers to use up some of their annual leave days.