It is summer time, and people are thinking about taking time off work. But mobile technology means employees can be contacted when they are not in the office. Do employers expect staff to be accessible - even when they're on annual leave?
"That's the expectation in a lot of work places around the country," says Ryan O'Reilly, who has worked with some of the top technology firms in the world. "I think it's detrimental to people's health, to be honest with you. It seems to be the expectation set by senior leaders. It's what they do and everyone else follows suit. Everyone is switched on. You can't miss an email. You're always available. Once that expectation is set, it is very hard to break it."
Mr O'Reilly struggled to achieve a work life balance, and after suffering burnout, he resigned. He is now an executive coach and speaker.
"I was always switched on," he says. "I was alwasy trying to do the right thing by the company, and over a number of months, I started to lose a bit of myself in the process." He stopped going for a morning run. He stopped eating healthy food, and his coffee intake increased. "You know something is wrong so you try to work harder to get out of it. I was like a hamster on a wheel. I felt like I was going around the same circle all of the time but not getting anywhere."
Maeve McElwee is the Director of Employment Relations at Ibec. She says when people are on annual leave, in particular, they are not expected to answer emails or work-related phone calls. "You should have an appropriate out of office on your phone; on your email, with contact details for some other colleague within the business who may be in a position to help answer a query that has come in, if it's urgent and can't wait for your return."
It is well established that overworked employees are not productive, and taking breaks, whether lunch breaks or a week's holiday, improves productivity. Ms McElwee agrees: "If you continue to try and work through your lunch break to late into the evening, you will wear yourself out, and after a very short period of time, you do drop in terms of your productivity, and your ability to be able to engage and enjoy the work that you're doing. The more people are engaged and enjoying what they are doing, the more they are actively participating and creating good opportunities within their own workplace. So yes, breaks are crucial."
Ibec's Director of Employment Relations advised people to speak with their line manager to establish what the expectation is around replying to emails or answering calls when out of the office. "If you are unsure, if you feel it is encroaching on your personal life or creating any kind of stress for you, by all means ask."
