What is 'silent vacation'? Viral workplace trend where employees take time off without telling their bosses | Trending

Why sneak away without telling your boss?

According to a survey by American market research and analytics firm The Harris Poll, about 78% of workers in the U.S., especially millennials and Generation Z, do not use all of their paid time off (PTO), CNBC reported.

Libby Rodney, chief strategy officer at The Harris Poll, told the newspaper that young professionals are not taking all of their paid vacation because they feel that requesting vacation makes them feel “like slackers.” They are also reportedly hesitant to take vacation because they feel it creates pressure to “meet deadlines and be productive.”

Some of the workforce have therefore come up with their own solution: they take the time off they need, but do not inform their superiors.

What do employees do during their “quiet vacation”?

According to the Guardian, about 40% of millennials have admitted to following this trend and taking vacation without informing their boss. According to the newspaper, some workers use certain methods during their silent vacation.

Some employees create an illusion to maintain the impression that they are working, the media reported. They schedule emails either to be sent during work hours, or sometimes outside of them, to give the impression that they are working overtime. Some also regularly move their computer mouse on the company's messaging platforms to pretend that they are working when in reality they are not.

“There's a huge workaround culture,” Rodney told CNBC. “They'll figure out how to get a reasonable work-life balance, but that's what happens behind the scenes,” Rodney explained, adding, “It's not exactly a quiet resignation, it's more of a quiet vacation.”