Many Americans Would Give Up Vacation Time for Higher Pay

Image: Many people prefer higher salaries to time off.  (photo courtesy alfexe / iStock / Getty Images Plus)
Image: Many people prefer higher salaries to time off. (photo courtesy alfexe / iStock / Getty Images Plus)
Janeen Christoff
by Janeen Christoff
Last updated: 11:28 AM ET, Wed July 17, 2019

It appears that many Americans value money more than time off.

Research from Allianz Global Assistance showed that half of Americans would accept a job with no vacation time if they were paid more.

The 11th annual Vacation Confidence Index also showed that one in three would give up some pay for an unlimited vacation.

Those most likely to sacrifice paid time off for higher salaries were millennials.

Sixty-three percent said they would forego vacation time for more money compared to 47 percent of Gen-Xers and 32 percent of baby boomers. Men were also more likely to look for money versus time off with 57 percent preferring a higher salary versus 41 percent of women.

However, the devil is in the details. In order to accept fewer days off, the average American said that the pay raise would have to be significant-a 48 percent increase-to give up vacation time.

More reasonably, one in five Americans were willing to give up their paid time off for an increase of 24 percent or less. One-third (29 percent) would need 25-49 percent more, 35 percent would need 50-99 percent more and 16 percent would need to double their salary to take this offer.

The Vacation Confidence Index also looked at the value of unlimited vacation, which is a growing trend in the workplace. More than one in 10 (12 percent) of Americans already have unlimited vacation.

One in three Americans (34 percent) said that they would give up a portion of their paycheck for unlimited vacation, with millennials leading the pack at 41 percent.

"We asked Americans to literally put a price tag on their vacation days, and one-third of U.S. workers said they would be willing to take a pay cut in exchange for unlimited paid time off," said Daniel Durazo, director of marketing and communications at Allianz Global Assistance USA. "Meanwhile half of Americans say they wouldn't accept a job with zero paid time off regardless of the salary. For those who value their vacation days, travel insurance offers peace of mind by protecting their trip investment from any covered travel disruptions."

It's interesting to note that millennials are both the most willing to give up vacation time for higher salaries and the most willing to give up salary for vacation time, which highlights that this generation values both success and personal flexibility.

For those willing to give up salary for unlimited time off, the average they would be willing to forgo is 26 percent with millennials willing to give up as much as 32 percent.

Nearly one-quarter of these respondents (22 percent) would be willing to give up over half their salary, while 21 percent would give up 25-49 percent and the majority (57 percent) would give up 24 percent or less.


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