Should You Be Working While On Vacation?

No

There's a big difference, in my mind at least, between answering emails and "working." I like that the article differentiates between phone/iPad email communication and laptop work.

Taking the BlackBerry is okay, just with proper expectation that emails aren't going to be returned right away. Laptop stays at home.

when I'm away, it's nice to check emails just to maintain my sanity when I get back to the office.

if I spend a few moments filing, deleting, etc., while making coffee while the wife sleeps, I don't come back to a thousand unread emails and then lose 2 days of work just trying to play "catch up."

if you're taking a vacation to somewhere truly off the grid, then of course no work, but if you're going for a weekend to Miami, I think they have wifi there, you can check an email or two.

I've always had the rule - if I'm on vacation, I will answer phone calls before a certain time depending on where I am and the office is (ex. if I'm on a ski trip out west and work in New York, I will field phone calls from roughly 7AM to 10AM EST. Once I get in line for the first run of the day, my phone doesn't come out until the end of the day and the start of Apres Ski, so figure 6:30PM EST.) but I won't respond to emails, remote access in, or do work. If I'm traveling abroad and can email, I will respond to emails when I get up just in case something is a quick question, otherwise I won't do it. I've gotten into this debate with my bosses multiple times about the need for balance and recharging one's batteries and sometimes it's better to shut the world out when traveling. If it's a long weekend, I'm a bit more willing to do a little work depending on what's on the docket and what my plans that weekend are.

Ultimately, it comes down to what the rules of your firm are. IF you have a block leave policy, there's jack shit that can be done while you are on block leave. If you don't, it's a matter of what your group generally does. So my advice to you is use your discretion but err on the side of what your group does unless block leave is involved, in which case, follow the block leave rules.

It really pains and make one mentally sick to work while on vacations. Neither the person nor his/her acquaintances will feel the happiness while the former engages with work while on vacation.

I prefer to do some light work on vacations to stay in the groove. Something that has always bothered my family and girlfriend, lol.

Depends on the vacation. If it's a long weekend and or domestic trip then I will check emails and take the occasional call. If i'm going oversees i'll leave the laptop at home and turn my email notifications off so I'm not tempted to check email whenever I get to a place with WIFI.

no choice

To my mind, if you've taken a vacation (especially if you've been waiting for it forever) you should forget about the job at least for some time and get a well-deserved rest. There are lots of people who keep on working while being on vacation and I don't get it at all. Vacation is a perfect time to put all problems aside and just enjoy your life. So my answer is no, you shouldn't work while on vacation.

I think a lot of taking or not taking the laptop comes with delegation. If you're the primary go to person on a project and shit is going down the week you are away from the office or away from the country, you better have reliable internet connection and a laptop when needed. The more you delegate, the less you need it. I'm not very good at delegating though as the work product seems to be shit sometimes in my view from other people and then I am responsible for the effects of their work when I return.

I feel part of the dilemma is relating to complicated roles, where its too time consuming to teach someone how to do the work just while you're on vacation and I have found it easier just to do the work myself.

When I take a vacation, I leave the laptop at home. Those who are on my team will need to figure out how to manage while I'm away at my discretion.

I bleed enough for my employer with late nights, weekends, working while sick, etc. They can handle while I'm away on my allocated PTO.

Leave the laptop. If you want to set aside an hour every morning to answering emails that seem urgent, that is one thing.

But a vacation isn't "work by the pool". It's important to relax and enjoy a life outside the office. I have colleagues who never switch off, and it clearly impacts their quality of life. If that's what you want, okay.... but don't look at me like every waking hour of every one of my days belongs to my employer.

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I worked a bit on my last vacation (which was my first real time off in a year since starting at my bank). We were gone for about 6 days and while it was tough to sync stuff up in another country, I still probably banged out 10 hours of work over the whole thing. Plus, having my phone and constantly checking emails throughout the days and nights really bugged me. I was worrying a lot that I'd have to do stuff. I had a blast on the vacation and my friends really made it a ton of fun for me (they really tried to suck up to me even though they obv didnt have to hahah because I got wrecked with personal life tragedy in the prior months), but knowing work was still there in the background made it impossible for me to truly distance myself. Next vacation I do is gonna be somewhere with no cell reception and limited wifi.

I cannot for the life of me understand you guys. Why are you spending thousands of dollars to go to a nice place just to do the same stuff that you do every other normal day? Is it to try to get top bucket bonuses?