While summer signals vacation season, many U.S. workers are holding back from using their earned time off — not because they don’t want the break, but because they don’t feel like they can take it.
A new LiveCareer survey of 1,000 U.S. employees revealed a pervasive sense of discomfort around paid time off (PTO). Despite nearly half of respondents having more than two weeks of PTO annually, over half said they plan to take less than a single week off this summer.
The reason? A mix of workload pressure, cultural signals, and financial strain.
Work Culture Sends Mixed Signals
Although most companies have PTO policies in place, a third of workers report feeling indirect pressure to leave some of it unused. About 1 in 10 say their employer actively discourages them from taking time off, subtly or otherwise. The unspoken message: rest is allowed, but not always encouraged.
This creates a climate of “vacation guilt.” Roughly 6 in 10 employees report anxiety about taking time away, often driven by fears that they’ll fall behind, miss out on important projects, or be seen as less committed. Some even worry about job security.
These concerns persist even in workplaces that publicly endorse time off.
Too Much Work, Too Little Time
Many employees say that even if they wanted to take time off, they couldn’t…not without work piling up in their absence. Almost half of respondents said workloads make it difficult to take meaningful breaks.
For some, the idea of returning to a mountain of tasks is more stressful than not taking a vacation at all.
Leadership behavior plays a powerful role here. Workers are significantly less likely to take time off when their managers don’t model it. In offices where leaders stay chained to their desks, employees are likely to follow suit.
The Disconnect Between Policy and Reality
Even when time off is on the table, it’s not always used. Many employees are offered generous PTO packages, but the majority are opting for only a few days off at a time, or skipping vacations altogether. This gap points to deeper cultural and structural issues around rest and recovery at work.
What Employees Actually Need
For workers to truly unplug, the right policies are just the starting point. Financial stability, clear coverage plans, and supportive leadership make the biggest difference. Employees say they’d feel more confident using their PTO if they knew their jobs were secure and their responsibilities would be handled while they’re away.
Companies that want to improve retention, wellbeing, and productivity should take a closer look at how PTO is treated within their culture.
