FEWER than 35% of Spanish residents 'switch off' from work when they are on holiday, according to separate studies carried out by recruitment agencies Adecco and Randstad.
The former cites 34.8% of workers continuing on the job in some form or another whilst on annual leave, whilst the latter gives a figure of 32.5% - meaning effectively, two-thirds of the country is still somehow 'working' whilst on holiday.
The '24/7 culture' affects both sexes and all ages, but the typical profile of an employee who does not use their holiday as complete down-time is a male aged under 25, and he is generally unhappy with how long he has for his holidays.
Women, in 72.5% of cases, claimed they did in fact 'leave the office behind' when they were away from it, according to Adecco.
Randstad says nearly half of those who stay connected to their job whilst away – 48.1% - do so because they 'find it difficult to shut their minds off' to work-related issues, whilst 27.5% say they cannot switch off because their companies still contact them while they are out of the office.
Mobile phones and the office email are the main communication channels between companies and their staff whilst the latter are away – around half check their emails and nearly six in 10 answer work-related calls during their breaks.
Of the under-25s, only 55.6% go into out-of-office mode mentally during annual leave and most say they need between two and 14 days to 'forget' work altogether; any less and they do not feel they have had a break.
For the over-25s, three days off is enough for them to start to put work out of their minds.
Randstad found staff in senior management positions are among the least likely to 'disconnect' whilst on holiday – in fact, 53.8% say they are unable to do so.
A third study, by researchers Grant Thornton, claims 60% of Spaniards who own companies or are self-employed are unable to switch off whilst on holiday – and 30% do not even see anything wrong with that.
Randstad warns that completely 'disconnecting' from work whilst on holiday is 'far more important than it appears', since, after a long period of work without at least a minimum of time off – mentally as well as physically – productivity takes a dive, which is just as harmful for the company as it is for the worker.
Adecco has drawn up a list of advice, which includes 'good planning and mental organisation' ahead of a holiday and taking at least two consecutive weeks off once a year or more, whilst ensuring measures are set up for calls and emails to be dealt with during annual leave.
Adecco also recommends managers 'lead by example', by taking holidays themselves, encouraging staff to do so, and ensuring proper coordination between team members, as well as planning ahead, and recognising employees are 'off limits' during their down time.
The research only covered employees, however – and in Spain, approximately half of the active working-age population is self-employed, meaning complete 'disconnection' is often impossible.
Madrid's regional president Cristina Cifuentes has recently come under fire for announcing she is not going to take any holiday this year, with members of the public saying she is setting a bad example and encouraging an 'all work, no play' culture.
She insists, however, that she never stops her own staff taking holiday and does not bug them while they are away, but that her own decision not to take time off is 'personal' and is her 'right' to make.
