Holidays on credit card increasing

The survey, which looked into how people budget their salaries when planning their holiday, found that 15% of people rely on their credit card to cover the cost and over a fifth (26%) do not save at all. 

Diana Bruce, Senior Policy Liaison Officer at the CIPP says “With the economy still in a fragile state it comes as no surprise to find that many employees do not have the disposable income available to put money by for their holidays. The public sector is facing a third year of pay freezes and even those who are lucky enough to get a pay rise may find it is barely matching inflation. Coupled with the increases in the cost of running a home and getting to work, many have had to start paying serious attention to their spending habits.”  

The survey also found that relaxation on holiday doesn’t come easy to professionals; when respondents were asked if they found it difficult to stop thinking about work on holiday 42% said yes. This statistic is not helped by nearly a fifth (19%) of people taking their work smart phone on holiday to keep in touch. Diana adds that having a work-life balance is of paramount importance and “if care is not taken this is where stress levels can increase and actually make the pressure of work even more difficult. There is a very good reason that by law employees must take a minimum of 5.6 weeks annual leave per year! 

The Office for National Statistics revealed last year that 41% of Brits are worried about the job security of the main breadwinner in their household, while 23% would have nothing to fall back on if they lost their job. With these concerns even where disposable income is available it may be that many are not seeing a holiday as the priority it once was.