Midcareer Sabbaticals Are New Antidote to Burnout
hispanicbusiness.com

November 6, 2007

MIAMI - Not long ago, workers considered mid-career sabbaticals perks for those who could afford time off to indulge in trips to Australia or backpacking through the Himalayas.

But now that success is measured by who can log the most hours, the sabbatical is making a comeback as an antidote for burnout. A growing number of workers want to disconnect from their jobs and recharge. And, for more of them, it's not just a pie-in-the-sky dream.

Just as teachers get the summer off to regroup, more employers, big and small, are stepping in to help their employees slow down, unplug and unwind - for from four weeks to a year.

"Companies find if they don't do something, their workers will burn out and leave, or worse, burn out and stay," says workplace consultant/speaker Bill Blades.

Among the Fortune 100 Best Places to Work, 22 companies boast of offering fully paid sabbaticals. The Society of Human Resources says the percentage of large companies that offer sabbaticals has doubled in the past five years.

Think of it as a campaign to save the spirit of valuable employees.

This story, which was written by Cindy Krischer Goodman, originally appeared in The Miami Herald. For the rest of this interesting piece, please go to the following link from Hispanic Business: http://career.hispanicbusiness.com/tools/news/story.asp?id=81289.

[top]