Having experience working as a designer for huge corporations to small start ups, one thing I’ve encountered everywhere and specifically with every boss I’ve had was the struggle to take time off. I’ve had push back for asking for anywhere from one day to a week off. I have always been responsible and have given plenty of notice and come up with plans for how I would finish my work prior to leaving the office. Even then, I’ve experienced resentment, shaming, and even threats for asking for vacations. Most people treat their subordinates the way their previous bosses have treated them. I can’t even count how many times I’ve had a boss tell me, “when I was your age,” or “in my time I was never allowed to do that,” or “you should be happy I’m not making you work until 2 am like my boss used to do.” It is time to break the cycle! After years of being silent and skipping out on opportunities to take trips, I finally got so fed up the last time this occurred, I took the issue to HR. All was well, and it turned out it was just my bosses personal problem. It wasn’t until that situation that she finally started taking vacations too. We really need to step up and not be silent about this issue. It is NOT okay to be bullied, shamed, or threatened for taking vacation! We need to have open and honest communication and recognize that we all have lives outside of work. I don’t care if fashion is super competitive, so is every other industry. When I became a boss for the first time, I sat down with my assistant and told her to be open with me, and not be afraid of wanting to go on a trip, or even taking a mental health day off. We are not robots, and this should not be an indication of one’s effectiveness as an employee. This shaming creates such a toxic environment, and people become silently unhappy and resentful. Any thoughts or solutions welcome.
I’ve been there and this issue usually doesn’t go away. You’re lucky to be in a company that actually has an hr dept to go to. It’s often just the owner and they go by their own rules. Sure I was able to negotiate 3 weeks of vacay but I was never able to take it!
Unfortunately I believe this happens in every industry but possibly a lot more in the fashion industry because of the hours we put in. I worked for a huge Corp for over a decade and had numerous bosses, I still would feel some type of shame from my peers or executives with their snarky “joking” reactions for taking however many days, even if it was just one. As I mentioned previously that I worked for a huge corp, HR NEVER helped. They pretended to side with you and pretend to understand and reported it right back to your bosses boss. It’s a tough situation but understand that these are YOUR benefits that came with the job offer.
I couldn’t agree more. Having no HR dept. is VERY hard. There is nowhere to turn and then the rules always change.
“You don’t know what it’s really like. When I started this career I used to sleep under my desk.” As if that’s a badge of honor 
There’s definitely a culture of hazing in this industry. Insane that full-grown men and women play that frat-level game.
How is everyone handling vacations/time off during the quarantine? I feel even more pressure not to take any days since I am working from home. I am still focused on my work, probably more so since I am always connected. A mental health day would be nice.
Dealt with this at United Legwear. It was so bad, that I never told anyone where i was going, didn’t allow any co workers on my social media. The CEO announced once that it was expected for everyone to check there work email while on vacation. I went away once, and them minute I connected to the hotel wifi, my phone exploded with messages.
We’ve had the opposite at my company. They took some PTO away from everyone (3 days from me) and are encouraging people to take time off while working from home. Went as far as to threaten black out dates when we fully reopen to stop the entire company from taking off at the same time. It’s really demoralizing, its not like like PTO away puts extra cash in their pocket, it just reduces our benefits.
same. in my car at f21. terrible. just terrible.
Definitely! I’ve been at companies that have HR and companies that don’t, and I could also say sometimes it doesn’t even matter if there is an HR department, because they usually won’t help anyway
I agree rhat it’s rare HR will take your side…they always side with upper management while making you feel like they’re helping you. Also, I can’t stand those snarky comments! It’s usually from people who are so unhappy with how much they work and miss out on the rest of their lives, and also aren’t courageous enough to stick up to their bosses, so they just going around making snide remarks. I see through their BS, and don’t allow them to bring me down.
So true, that’s a pretty good way of putting it. It’s pathetic, sad, and immature.
Ha! Did this person expect you to congratulate them for being SO dedicated and great at their job for working 24/7? Some people don’t realize that working that much usually means they’re innefficient, probably change their minds too often, or just plain slow.
It used to be that you received a set amount of vacation and earned more over time. Companies learned that they had to write big checks when people left for the unused vacation days. So now, most companies are switching to “unlimited vacation”. But what that really means, is they create a culture where you are less likely to take time off than if you had been allotted a two week minimum.
Seriously, the lack of HR is a problem!! That’s really how these fashion companies get away with murder. There is NO protection for employees and it should be mandatory for a business with more then 50 people to have an HR rep.
Vacation shaming is very real. I can relate to managers using their past trauma as an excuse to treat their associates poorly. When I started managing, I made it a point to never make my associates feel like they couldn’t take their vacations. It is important to take time off and relax! You can’t work when you are burned out and stressed. Additionally, it’s SO important to stay home if you are sick!!! I have come into the office while sick because of feeling pressure or guilt for not working, but trust, it doesn’t help anyone to be coming in and spreading germs…and you can’t work property when you feel like shit.
Don’t be fooled - most of the time HR is in place to protect the company.
Protecting the employees happens when it’s in the company’s best interests.
Unfortunately, sometimes it means that the leadership doesn’t hire enough people to complete the tasks.
One person is often doing the work of 3.
I was made to shorten my vacation by 4 days (which involved penalty charges) to come back to be fired for my boss’ over spending. Had nothing to do with me or my vacation.