Best practices for offering employee sabbaticals

“It's a risk — but we're prepared to take that risk to give people the benefit.”

So says Mary Alice Vuicic, chief people officer at Thomson Reuters, in discussing her company’s new sabbatical, which could see employees leaving their job for up to six months — and choosing not to return.

That’s understandable, she says.

“When people have an opportunity to step away from their role, they have reflection time, and it may cause them to think about ‘How do I feel about my life? How do I feel about how my career fits in there? Do I think that I'd like to see some changes?’ That happens today when people are maternity or parental leaves, when people take an extended vacation, if they’ve had a big life event.

“And so we would encourage people to have that reflection on an ongoing basis. I think if somebody came back and said, ‘You know what, I don't really want to stay in the job that I was in, I'm looking for a change,’ then we would look at ‘Can we accommodate that change?’ And again, each situation is individual.”

Benefits of taking sabbaticals

If an employer can offer sabbaticals, and it makes sense for your staff and your company, by all means, offer the leave, says Cissy Pau, principal consultant at Clear HR Consulting in Vancouver.

“Presumably it's for attraction and retention of staff, and when the labour market is as tight as it is, and you're trying to find all the ways that you can keep your great staff or attract great staff, by all means, do it.”

For Thomson Reuters, offering the sabbatical is a way to differentiate from the competition, according to Vuicic.

“People, number one, appreciate that it's available. So that has been really significant — more than we might have thought.”

There are times when people want to be able to step away from their role for a longer period of time, beyond a two- or three-week vacation, she says. That could mean pursuing a particular passion, such as climbing Mt Kilimanjaro, or going through a difficult time, such as taking care of a loved one.

While the company also offers flex or unlimited vacation along with “work from anywhere” for up to eight weeks, the sabbatical leave was co-created with employees and “will probably have the lowest frequency but high value,” she says.

Also offering an employee sabbatical is telecom experience platform iQMetrix, with up to seven weeks after seven years with the company.

“We believe in the value of taking time to refresh, re-energize, but also really evaluate where someone may be at and where they want to be,” says Natasha D’Cruze, global director of workforce development.

“With our company, we're in what we call the business of creating great experiences. And so we want every employee to have whatever experience might be meaningful to them on an extended basis throughout their career.”

The sabbatical is also paid, so people can de-stress without money being a factor, she says.

“The employee contributes one week of their vacation time — which now we're on unlimited vacation, so it's a minimal impact — and the company provides the remaining six weeks as paid time off, fully paid.”

Understandably, it’s a popular offering.

“When people become eligible for their sabbatical, they take it,” says D’Cruze.

“People have taken trips; people have started new projects in their personal lives; some people just take a really great staycation and enjoy time with their family and friends at home.”

In addition, those employees who help cover for the person on sabbatical have the chance to try something new or work with a different team, she says.

“We typically don't put somebody on something absolutely major, just because it’s seven weeks and by the time they train up and get comfortable, then usually the seven-week period is winding down by then — but in terms of what's realistic within seven weeks for skill development, or trying something new, there’s absolutely that opportunity.”

The idea of taking a leave from work is popular with Canadians, according to a 2019 survey, with many workers actively saving money to accomplish this goal.

Ironing out the details of sabbaticals

Considering the time involved, it’s important that employers iron out the details on how exactly this leave would work. For example, how long is too long, or long enough? And when should it take effect?

If a sabbatical is offered after 10 years, for example, that sounds nice but, practically, it might never happen for new employees, says Pau, “so then it doesn't serve the purpose, if one of the purposes of offering sabbatical is retention… it might be so far out of expectation for the average new employee.”

At Thomson Reuters, employees only have to be employed there for a minimum of three years.

“We have quite an impressive length of service across our organization, but recognizing that careers have become shorter in companies, we wanted access as accessible as possible,” says Vuicic.

Then there’s consideration about who exactly should be eligible, says Pau.

“Is it every employee who passes that milestone? Is it certain people that are your star performers?” she says.

“I don't think it's a one size fits all. I think you need to get clear, if you're going to offer a sabbatical: What's the purpose? And what's the intention? And what can it be used for?” she says.

“If you're going to be offering these perks and benefits, they have to make sense for the employees. They have to be something they want, and they've got to work. So how do you make it workable?”

Thomson Reuters has tried to make their sabbatical as accessible as possible by having minimal requirements, says Vuicic.

“All full-time and part-time colleagues who meet that criteria are eligible. And then they would have to work with their leader to work on the timing to make sure it works with the team so that it's properly planned.”

At iQmetrix, employees are asked to take their sabbatical within 18 months of becoming eligible, though there was some flexibility during the COVID pandemic, says D’Cruze, “so we are seeing now — over the last eight months, now that the world has slowly started to open again — that employees are taking their sabbatical.”

Potential challenges of sabbaticals

Of course, given the length of time offered, there are a few challenges to consider. For one, if it’s paid, can companies afford it?

“If you were a 10,000-person company or a 5,000-person company, financially, you might have deeper pockets, but your 10-person company or your 50-person company? It might not,” says Pau.

Then, who is allowed to take it?

“How do you communicate to the people that aren't star performers that they don't get to take it?... How do you maintain fairness and equity for your staff yet make it work for your company?” she says.

Of course, one of the biggest considerations is who will cover for the absent employee, says Pau.

“It's hard enough finding somebody for a one-year replacement, say for maternity leave.. It's not like people are slacking off. So if there's not excess capacity in your day, and you're going to then take on the job of somebody who's away, what gives? And what then has to pass on to somebody else?”

At Thomson Reuters, the response will differ depending on the situation, says Vuicic. If somebody is going for four weeks or six weeks on sabbatical, for example, the company may not do a backfill in any way.

“It really depends on the kind of work that the person had.”

At iQmetrix, the company asks that employees provide at least three months’ notice of their intention to take their sabbatical, says D’Cruze, “so that they can work with their team, with their lead, to ensure operational needs can be met during their absence.”

Returning to work

It’s also important to remember the transition period when the person on sabbatical returns to their regular workplace.

“It could be very disruptive,” says Pau. “Can you slot them in as easily when they come back? Especially if they've been out of touch for the full six months, or whatever the time period is, and there's been a major company announcement or change or buyout or merger? It sounds really great — until you work on the details.”

The longer the period of time away, the more likely things will change. The job they come back to, and the processes and the people they work with, might not be the same, she says.

“What if their boss changes? What if their coworkers have moved on? The job might be the same, but maybe it's not the same environment. And so you're going to have to deal with some of those reintegration issues.”

At Thomson Reuters, it would be “pretty seamless,” says Vuicic, citing the fact that the 26,000-employee organization has employee leaves happening all the time.

And at iQmetrix, the sabbaticals are tracked in the calendar, so teams have time to prepare for people coming back to work, says D’Cruze.

“When they come back, they get a quick re-onboarding with the team as to where things are at with projects or any changes that have happened in the company or on the team… each team does it differently, but that is something we encourage as well.”