According to a survey, 93% of Gen Z and young millennial business leaders think it’s appropriate to contact colleagues who are on vacation regarding urgent, critical or emergency-level business matters.
Senior leaders most likely to contact colleagues on vacation (by generation):
- Gen Z & young millennials (25-34 years old) – 93%
- Older millennials (35-44 years old) – 87%
- Older millennials & young baby boomers (45-54 years old) – 86%
- Baby boomers (55-64 years old) – 83%
In second place came older millennial leaders, as 87% believing reaching out to colleagues who are out of office is acceptable for matters with this same degree of urgency.
These figures both reveal significantly high levels of acceptance for overstepping work-life boundaries of colleagues on vacation.
Meanwhile, baby boomer business leaders show a slightly greater respect for colleagues’ vacation boundaries, with 83% deeming it acceptable to contact workers who are away.
Pressure to work while on vacation
An overwhelming 89% of Gen Z and young millennial senior leaders said they feel obligated to respond to work-related queries while on vacation.
This is the highest figure amongst surveyed business leaders across a variety of generations.
These findings challenge the stereotype of younger generations being more “lazy”, and instead suggest that Gen Z and younger millennials in positions of seniority could be normalizing an unhealthy work ethic.
Could AI solve poor work-life balance among young business leaders?
Considering that 61% of business leaders say AI has improved their work life balance, adopting AI into daily business tasks could help young business leaders to optimise their time within the office.
AI-automated tasks can increase productivity and create additional free time for younger leaders to tackle more complex or strategic-level tasks at work.
These small changes might make a big difference to work-life balance.
Editor of Tech.co, Jack Turner, comments:
“The combination of an increase in remote work, and advancements in workplace tech, means that workers are more accessible than ever, even when off the clock. This blurring of boundaries is likely something that younger generations have grown up with, which could explain why they are more predisposed to contacting colleagues outside of hours.
The good news is that while this looks like a problem that technology has created, it’s also one that it can resolve, as our study shows that AI is aiding workers readdress their work life balance.”
*Tech.co’s 2025 Impact of Tech on the Workplace Report
