Just under half (46%) of full-time employees are cancelling an average of seven days annual leave in 2020, according to research by Timetastic.
The survey of 2002 UK employees, published in May 2020, also found that just over one-third (36%) have not been informed by their employers of any guidelines in relation to carrying over their 2020 annual leave.
Additionally, over one in five (17%) have been advised they need to use their entitlement up before the end of the year, with 3% being told they are unable to take any annual leave this year.
Furthermore, almost two-thirds (60%) of respondents did not use all of their annual leave entitlement in 2019. 9% felt that they could not use their full entitlement because their role was too essential, while 5% said their employer made it difficult for them, with a further 5% citing workplace culture dissuaded them.
Gary Bury, the chief executive at Timetastic, said: "The sheer number of days of annual leave being cancelled around the UK is potentially only the start of the trouble for employers. If employees decide to take them all later in the year, there could be a real productivity crisis in autumn or winter.
"The onus is on employers to fully explain the new rules for annual leave carry-over, as set out by the government, to employees. That information might help them to decide to save some holidays for a larger trip next year, ‘flattening the curve’ of cancelled annual leave being rebooked and ensuring productivity stays high throughout the rest of 2020."
