Sabbaticals Are a Useful Perk, But They Won’t Cure Burnout

(Bloomberg Opinion) -- In yet another reminder that the competition for talent never stops, the Wall Street Journal reports that investment banks, tech companies and other elite firms are quietly offering sabbaticals as a way to retain employees burned out by the pandemic. This follows reports last year that companies including Nike and LinkedIn gave their workers an extra week off to cope with the strain of Covid-19.

Such stories always elicit strong emotions. Perhaps this one sparks jealousy (“I want that!”) or outrage (“We can’t pass a four-week maternity leave and coders get six to 12 weeks for sabbaticals?!”). But consider this perk dispassionately: Will it work against burnout? Probably not.

Alluring as sabbaticals may be, what we know about burnout suggests that time off isn’t the best way to deal with it. Sabbaticals — like on-site gyms, egg-freezing and napping pods — may be a well-intentioned benefit that subtly underlines just how much the company expects to extract from staff. “You won’t have time to work out, have kids or sleep, so here are some amenities to help with that,” such perks seem to say. “Oh and when you collapse from exhaustion, we’ll give you a sabbatical.”

I’m willing to believe that sabbaticals, if carefully designed, could help retain talent, but that’s a different goal than managing stress. For a worker who has stayed with a company for seven years, a sabbatical may be just what they need to sign on for another seven. In part because of Americans’ dysfunctional relationship with time off, changing jobs is often seen as the only way to get a break lasting more than a couple of weeks. Offering a sabbatical is a way of saying, “You don’t need to leave to get this time.”

But addressing chronic burnout requires a more sustainable strategy. Like losing weight or getting in shape, stress-reduction requires lasting life changes.

Rest alone isn’t sufficient because overwork, while a leading cause of burnout, isn’t its only cause. Jennifer Moss, author of “The Burnout Epidemic,” cites research pointing to other factors, including a lack of autonomy, recognition and connection; doing work that doesn’t reflect one’s values; and feeling as if the workplace is unfair. Rest can address exhaustion, but not cynicism or powerlessness.

Seen this way, it’s clear why even skilled managers struggle to keep staff happy right now. There’s nothing like a global pandemic to sap one’s feelings of autonomy.

In this context, corporate wellness offerings such as meditation apps seem tone deaf, Moss said: “Like here, take five minutes to breathe and listen to rain and that’s going to fix your burnout.” Giving employees a week, or even several, to recuperate and then thrusting them back into a 70-hour-a-week schedule won’t help.

What burned-out employees need are managers who are willing to lighten the workload by 15-20%, Moss said, and set boundaries that keep them from checking email on nights and weekends. (If this sounds impossible, that’s a sign of how much it’s needed.) Executives should encourage a balanced work diet: sustainable hours, connections with colleagues, and projects that are interesting and meaningful.

Moss suggests finding a way for employees to regularly take three- or four-day weekends. Shorter breaks are less stressful, because they don’t involve “vacation debt” — all the extra hours spent preparing to be away, or catching up from having been away.

When I asked Moss how to get the most out of a sabbatical, should one be lucky enough to have the option, I expected her to caution against, say, binge-watching “Succession” and instead focus on meaningful experiences — an RV trip, watercolor painting, hiking the Appalachian Trail. She didn’t. She said just rest. “There’s a lot of productivity shaming that happens when people take time off.”

“A lot of people I know have taken time away and feel a level of guilt for not accomplishing something major,” like writing a book, Moss added. “That’s not actually resting — writing a book is a really exhausting thing to do!” Instead, she advises using the time to disconnect from work and reflect on what’s important. Then it may be possible to return to work walking a healthier path. And not feel guilty about it.

More From Bloomberg Opinion:

• Lying Flat Without Health Insurance Is Very Uncomfortable: Alexis Leondis
• It Always Pays to Take Sabbaticals and Vacations: Sarah Green Carmichael
• Will a Four-Day Week Work for You?: Andreas Kluth

This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners.

Sarah Green Carmichael is an editor with Bloomberg Opinion. She was previously managing editor of ideas and commentary at Barron’s, and an executive editor at Harvard Business Review, where she hosted the HBR Ideacast.

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