Midyear Burnout is Real: Why Time Off is More Essential Than Ever

The summer is quickly coming to a close. Do you know if your team members have taken meaningful time off yet? We're talking more than just a three-day weekend here and there. Have folks taken actual time off to recharge or handle other things in their lives?

The middle of the year is when we start to see people struggle if they haven't taken enough time away from work. That's even truer now, as people carry the collective weight of constant crisis and trauma. We are exposed every single day to climate change, political upheaval, acts of mass violence, rapid technological changes, and more.

It's a LOT to carry. Time spent not working is critical to protect our health and wellbeing, but oftentimes people aren't conditioned to think of time off that way. As leaders, our role is to acknowledge that rest can't wait, recognize when midyear burnout is happening, and check in on our teams to be sure they're taking enough time. 

Why rest can't wait in today's world

Our nervous systems just aren't built to sustain continuous exposure to crises. 

It doesn't matter if we're experiencing these problems directly or being exposed to them through a constant stream of headlines, alerts, and notifications — we feel distressed, and our body understands there is danger and activates a fear response. Add work stress to the top of the pile, and it's no wonder people are hitting their limits. 

Time off isn't just a nice-to-have benefit anymore; it's a preservation tool that keeps people healthy and well. We can't expect people to show up for work, day after day, and perform at their best nonstop while they're simultaneously processing collective trauma and managing their own personal lives. 

Instead, we need to shift the narrative from "time off as a luxury" to "time off as essential maintenance." It's something that must be done to maintain balance and allow people to take care of themselves. 

The midyear burnout trap

Midyear often sneaks up on people. Everything feels shiny and new in January, then spring rolls around and brings fresh possibilities, and before you know it, it's July and everyone's wondering how time got away from them. 

There are two major traps organizations fall into when it comes to PTO: 

• The summer slide: In the same way kids experience learning losses over the summer, teams see a productivity dip midyear. People are in and out of the office, kids are at home needing more attention, and things are generally more inconsistent. However, if your high performers aren't taking off during this period, there's a chance they're taking on the brunt of the workload without proper support.

• The year-end rush: When people wait until the holidays to take time off, this can create coverage issues. We see this a lot when people think of PTO as something to use "only" for holidays or travel plans; they backlog vacation time for the end of the year and then run into hurdles when multiple people plan to leave for weeks on end.

When rest is put on the back burner and constantly shelved for a future date, people are less creative and motivated. Decisions are harder to make because folks are fatigued, and people start looking around at other opportunities because they don't feel like they have work-life balance. 

This is why it's critical to check in with your team! 

Check in on your people with a midyear time off audit

The only way to know what's really going on with your team's PTO is to look at the hard data. 

Here's how to conduct a midyear audit that will reveal any patterns and help you confirm that people are taking time away:

1. Pull the numbers

Create a simple spreadsheet to track PTO usage across the org. Your HR platform should have this readily available. Look at total time off, sick vs PTO (if you offer both), and when time was taken. 

2. Look for trends

Analyze whether there are patterns across teams, role, demographics, or manager. For example, if you notice that certain departments or roles do take time off but others don't, that warrants further investigation. 

3. Document any red flags

Pay attention to anyone who hasn't taken any time off, as well as folks with maximum PTO accrued who aren't using it. Team members who take just a day here and there are probably only dealing with emergencies, and you can make a note of that as well. You should also include any notable trends you found in the second step here. 

4. Start an open dialogue

Time to get the conversation going! Talk to people about what you found. If there's a manager of a team showing low PTO usage, ask them why that is. Are they aware of it? How can they encourage people to take time away? Is there a reason people aren't taking time off that can be addressed? 

4. Take action

If you see global patterns — for instance, half of your workforce hasn't taken meaningful time off — you have to examine your policies and culture (more on that in our next blog). Overworking employees is not part of your values, and you will need to investigate why this is happening alongside your executive team.

If the issues are specific to certain teams or roles, work with the appropriate parties on solutions. That might be additional coverage, flexible deadlines, or temporary resource reallocation to give people the space to step away. 

An audit is just the first step 

Once you've conducted your audit, you might be wondering what to do next to support your team in taking time to unplug. In our next blog, we'll dive into the infrastructure and culture changes that allow PTO to work for everyone. You'll see that offering PTO and creating conditions where people feel comfortable taking it are two very different things.

In the meantime, if you want support conducting a time off audit or interpreting what you've discovered, we're here to help!