Vacation season is in full swing! Here at Lü, we are very fortunate to have an unlimited paid vacation and holiday policy. Wait, what… paid?! Yep, you read that right.
The management team had three main goals in mind when they decided to implement this forward-thinking policy in January 2021:
- Show that we value a balanced lifestyle and taking time to recharge.
- Prove that we trust our team and encourage accountability.
- Encourage creativity, reflection, and a big-picture perspective to help our business succeed.
We strongly believe that vacations should be just that: vacations. Vacations should never be used when you’re feeling under the weather or need to take care of your kids when schools are closed and you don’t have a babysitter. There are family and sick days for that. For us, vacations are planned breaks that should help you relax, recharge, and do whatever makes you feel good. They’re a time to fully disconnect from work and reconnect with yourself. You need to be in a good place—and have enough energy—for that.
How is this policy applied?
We needed to make sure that this privilege wouldn’t be a burden for employees or devolve into anarchy. For that reason, we laid out some ground rules. First of all, you need to keep your commitments and make sure your deliverables are on track. Second, you need to give your teammates advance notice (following a rule of three) so they can prepare accordingly. Finally, you need to really kick back and enjoy your vacation to the fullest!
So far, all our employees have used the policy wisely and truly appreciate it.
So, do people really use it?
Companies that offer this benefit have found that people tend to use it sparingly, or even take less vacation than average. To remedy that, we created a communication channel where our employees can share their vacation photos. The management team—who’s encouraged to lead by example—also sends out a reminder of the policy several times a year.
In 2021, we found that employees took an average of 5.7% vacation time, in addition to the 10 days off that Lü offers over the holidays. However, we also noted that some people unfortunately weren’t taking enough vacation time, which led us to add another clause to our policy: you have to take at least two weeks of vacation per year. We don’t pay unused vacation time; our top priority is for our employees to get the rest they deserve!
How is it managed administratively?
We won’t deny it: that was quite a headache! We had to find a way to manage vacation banks all while obeying the law, which says we have to allocate the equivalent of at least 4% of each paycheck to vacations. We finally came up with a simple solution. We accrue the 4% on each paycheck; however, the policy states that employees’ vacation banks can be in the negative and they’ll never have to pay it back. Every year, on May 1, all the vacation banks are reset to “0” and we start over. Whether an employee has -$20 in the bank or -$3,750, they won’t ever have to pay it back, even if they leave the company during the year.
We’re proud to have implemented such a daring policy at Lü. It shows the level of trust we have in our team and speaks to just how important everyone’s well-being is to us. Over the coming year, we’ll continue to encourage employees to take advantage of this benefit more frequently, and not just during the summer. Having happy, well-rested, and well-cared-for colleagues means the world to us!
