For hundreds of thousands of families, the months of July and August are not just a time for the beach, popsicles, and family outings, but primarily an exhausting logistical and financial survival test. While children embark on a long vacation of nearly two months, the Israeli job market continues to operate as usual, and the deep gap between the education system’s calendar and the demands of the economy places parents in an impossible daily trap.
A new survey conducted by the research department at AllJobs among parents of children up to age 15 paints a complex picture of the Israeli summer and illustrates the extent of the burn-out. The most concerning finding in the survey shows that 39 percent of parents reached the summer break period with zero available accrued vacation days. This shortage is not merely a technical problem or a minor clause in an employment contract, but a matter with direct and painful economic consequences: For 43 percent of parents, every additional vacation day they need to take beyond their quota will translate directly into a salary reduction, a particularly harsh blow during times of rising living costs and inflated summer expenses. Some parents save their few remaining days for the High Holy Days or emergencies, while others have already used them up during the year for child illnesses or previous holidays, and are now forced to find creative solutions out of thin air.
In terms of actual planning on the ground, 17 percent of survey respondents noted that they plan to use more than 10 vacation days during the summer, 23 percent will use between 5 and 10 days, and 25 percent will make do with just 1 to 5 vacation days. Conversely, 35 percent of parents indicated that they will not use any vacation days at all, mostly simply because they have no days left to use or because they cannot afford a hit to their monthly income.
Alongside this, the survey found an interesting and clear gender gap regarding the remaining balance of vacation days available to employees. Almost half of working men (45 percent) reached the summer period with no available vacation days at all, compared to 35 percent of women. On the other hand, 29 percent of women had more than 10 available vacation days left to use, compared to only 10 percent of men. This gap may point to different patterns of vacation usage throughout the work year, the nature of job roles, or differences in the scope of positions between men and women in the Israeli economy.
However, organizational and physical solutions for parents do not always exist on the ground. Fifty-seven percent of parents reported that their workplace does not go on a concentrated shutdown at all during July and August, forcing them to find proactive and individual solutions. Only 17 percent work in organizations that implement a concentrated shutdown that organizes the schedule, while 26 percent admit that they do not know at all if such a step is planned by their employer. Flexibility within the office walls is also very limited: 60 percent of parents responded that it is strictly forbidden to bring children to the workplace during the vacation. Only 28 percent noted that they can do so freely whenever necessary, and 12 percent said that the option exists only on designated, concentrated days organized by the employer for the entire organization. Having no choice, 21 percent of parents rely heavily on the help of grandparents to get through the open days on the calendar.
Nevertheless, there are employers who understand the complexity of the situation and demonstrate greater flexibility toward their employees: 36 percent allow exceeding the vacation day quota with special approval without a salary deduction, 20 percent allow working part of the time from home to combine child supervision with work, and 15 percent allow employees to miss days without recording it as a declared vacation day on the attendance form.
“The summer break carries high costs that parents pay every year, not only in money but also in vacation days,” says Liat Ben-Torah Shushan, vice president of career and placement at AllJobs. “Vacation days are not just another technical clause in an employment contract, but a significant management tool that enables a healthy balance between work and private life, as well as long-term career management. Flexible and hybrid work is no longer a ‘benefit’ granted to employees, but a condition that has become an integral part of the psychological contract between employee and employer. Precisely during the summer, when working parents are required to juggle role requirements and family obligations, employers who allow flexibility, in work hours or remote work, gain more committed employees who continue to meet targets even during challenging periods.”
Source:
www.jpost.com
