Some Remote Employees Are Taking Secret 'Hush Trips' While on the Clock, According to a New Study As workers begin to return to the office, some are squeezing every last drop out of their WFH setups by taking secret vacations.
By Dan Bova
Have you joined the growing number of people taking "hush trips"? (Don't worry, we won't tell anyone.)
A hush trip is a vacation that you take without telling your bosses — or using any precious PTO days. And it is an under-the-radar practice in today's work-from-home and hybrid landscape.
Related: Here's Why Every Employee Should Have Unlimited Vacation Days
The hush trip trend was illuminated by a recent study conducted by Price4Limo.com, which surveyed 1,010 full-time employees working in America to find out their vacation habits, favorite destinations and time spent getting away from it all.
The most interesting part is that last bit. "Getting away from it all" has taken on a new meaning these days. Forty-five percent of those surveyed said they have recently been on a "workcation," which means they left home for a sunnier destination but sat on the beach building spreadsheets rather than sandcastles. Sounds fun, right?
The top three reasons respondents gave for taking a workcation were:
- Visiting family or friends
- Needed a change of scenery
- Wanted an off-hours vacation while maintaining productivity at work
These reasons, the study writers say, "underscore Americans' desire for a better work-life balance." (Working through vacation days doesn't sound very balanced to us, but we're not here to tell anyone how to live their lives.)
Related: 3 Steps to That Unplugged, Peace-of-Mind Vacation People Talk About
These workcations come with an agreement between employers and employees ("Yes, I will be away and yes, you can pester me with emails all day long.") But hush trips? That's a whole different deal.
Hush vacations involve pretending to work from home while you are actually swimming up to the pool bar instead.
Experts that Price4Limo.com consulted say that hush trips are problematic for many reasons, primarily the possibility of losing trust or getting canned if your superiors find out. Is it worth the stress knowing you could easily get busted if a volleyball game breaks out behind you during a Zoom call? We have to believe that if you are taking a hush trip, you're probably not very invested in keeping your job, so stress might not factor in too much.
Whether respondents were taking a workcation or a hush trip, Price4Limo.com asked them where they liked to go. The top five cities:
- Minneapolis
- Miami
- Tampa
- Atlanta
- Oakland
Take that South Beach, Minneapolis is where it's at! Read the entire list and other findings from the survey here. Just maybe ask your boss first if you plan to read it on company time.
