Time poverty prompts employees to skip paid time off

But time poverty is taking those days away.

A separate poll from Solitaired this year revealed that 47% of Americans have left some PTO on the table in 2024, with their top reasons including work.

“The most common reasons we see for people skipping PTO include things like internalised pressure, heavy workloads, and organisational culture. Time poverty is a big driver of burnout and overall diminished health and life/work satisfaction,” said Tim Church, chief medical officer at Wondr Health, in a statement.

“The findings show how important time off and flexibility are and signal that employers need to honestly evaluate how their current culture and policies may be impacting PTO hesitancy, burnout and subsequent impacts on health and wellness,” Church said.

Unable to fully unplug

But even if some employees are able to utilise their PTO, Church warned that some are unable to fully unplug and get the most out of their time away from work.