The summer holidays can be a challenging period for organisations and employees alike. With many team members taking time off for a well-deserved holiday or simply for childcare, maintaining morale can become tricky.
However, with thoughtful planning and supportive measures, employers can ensure a smooth and productive summer. Here are six key areas to focus on: supporting working parents, managing heatwaves, assisting employees stuck abroad after their holiday has finished, supporting the team when others are on annual leave, encouraging mental wellbeing, and planning inclusive summer activities.
1. Supporting Working Parents
For working parents, balancing the work responsibilities and their children can be stressful and summer holidays often mean juggling work responsibilities with childcare. With 51% of people saying they cannot afford activities or time away with their kids, more people will have their children at home while having to work as well.
Here’s how you can help working parents:
Offer Flexible Working Hours
Offering flexible working hours allows parents to balance their work responsibilities with their childcare needs. For example, you could allow parents to start work earlier and finish later, to ensure they have time during the day with their kids.
Alternatively, allow working parents to temporary work reduced hours so they don’t have to sacrifice too much of their annual leave to spend with their kids. A 4 day working week or a shorter working day can be helpful measures.
Remote Work Options
Where possible, provide the option to work from home. This flexibility can reduce the stress of commuting and give parents more time to spend with their children. For those parents whose children are not in clubs throughout the summer, it means they can be at home while their children are at home as well, saving money on expensive day care.
This should be managed well as usually children take priority over work responsibilities, so employers should discuss with their employees how they will manage the two responsibilities and ensure that the parent makes arrangements so the children are looked after while still being able to focus on their work.
2. Managing Heatwaves
Although unlikely for this summer in the UK, heatwaves can significantly impact productivity and employee well-being. For most of the country, a heatwave is when temperatures are 25 degrees or over for 3 consecutive days.
Advice for Employers During a Heatwave
Here’s how to keep your workplace cool and comfortable:
Temperature Control
Most offices in the UK do not have effective air-conditioning, but where it is available, it should be allowed to run on hot days. Alternatives are providing fans to allow circulation of air and ideally have windows open to allow fresh air in (in the absence of air-conditioning).
Most window covers such as blinds can also be very effective in keeping the heat of the sun out of the office.
Water Stations:
Set up water stations with water coolers and encourage employees to drink water regularly. With tap water not being the best in the country, people may try to drink more coffee or tea, but these are both dehydrating drinks. Providing cooled water and other healthy soft drinks where possible, employees can find a way to cool down, stay hydrated and be more productive (1% dehydration can lead to a 12% productivity loss). Providing fresh fruit and other hydrating snacks can also help.
Dress Code Adjustments
Relax the dress code to allow for lighter, more breathable clothing. Allow people to wear shorts, t-shirts and dresses where otherwise not allowed. This can make a significant difference in comfort levels during hot days. You may want to be clear in what is allowed and what is not, as people may take the lighter clothing too serious.
Flexible Working Arrangements
Consider allowing employees to work earlier or later in the day to avoid the peak heat hours. Days are usually the coolest in the morning, so allowing people to work early from 6am onwards, can ensure that people have to work less during the hot hours of the day.
Remote work options can also be beneficial during heatwaves, especially if the office environment cannot be cooled down enough to ensure a comfortable workplace.
Summer Safety Tips for the Workplace
The HSE has a number of recommendations for employers to follow to ensure safe and comfortable working environments during the summer months. These include:
- making sure windows can be opened or closed
- providing fans to cool the air or local heaters
- checking air conditioning units are maintained
- introducing flexible hours or early/late starts to avoid high or low temperatures
- relaxing formal dress codes to allow fewer or more layers of clothing
3. Assisting Employees Stuck Abroad After Their Holiday
With people traveling abroad there is an increased risk that flights are delayed, leaving people stranded. This can be stressful and impact their ability to return to work on time. The important thing to remember is that in the vast majority of cases, it is not the employee’s fault, so employers should remain empathetic and supportive to their employee’s predicament. Here’s how you could support them:
Leave Flexibility
Be flexible with your leave provisions. If an employee is stranded and unable to work, consider extending their annual leave or offering unpaid leave options. Usually, employees only need 1 or 2 extra days to deal with a delayed flight, but if it is longer, you may need to think how this impacts the team at work as well and allow for a contingency plan, especially if this crosses over into other team member’s leave.
Clear Communication
Maintain open lines of communication with employees who are travelling. Allow people to focus on their journey home, while asking them to keep you updated maybe once a day where possible on their ETA back in the office.
Remote Work Options
If employees are able to work remotely, allow them to do so. Most employee will not bring their work equipment, but they may have brought their personal laptop or tablet. As most office work is now done over the cloud, any device with internet connection and the correct login should be able to access work files and emails remotely.
This will allow for work to continue without delay, while the employee does not have to book additional days off or use unpaid leave to cover their delay home.
4. Managing Annual Leave in the Workplace
During the summer, it’s normal for multiple team members to take time off around the same period. While holidays are important, this can put extra pressure on those who are still working. By planning ahead and offering the right support, employers can make this easier for everyone.
Plan Ahead
Encourage employees to book their annual leave early, so the business can plan accordingly. This allows teams to stagger their holidays and ensures there’s always enough coverage for critical tasks.
Temporary Task Sharing
It’s important that no one person feels overwhelmed covering for others. Consider sharing tasks across a few team members and be clear about what’s a priority, what can wait, and who’s responsible for what. Managers should also be available to step in where needed.
Cross-Training Opportunities
A great way to prepare for absences is to train team members in each other’s key tasks. This reduces stress when someone is away and helps build resilience across the team.
5. Encouraging Mental Wellbeing in the Workplace
Summer can be busy, and not everyone gets a break at the same time. For those who are working while others are off, or who may be feeling stretched, it’s important to promote mental wellbeing at work.
Regular Check-ins
Managers should check in more frequently over summer to see how team members are feeling. Even a 10-minute chat can make someone feel supported and valued.
Encourage Real Breaks
Remind employees to take their full lunch breaks, go outside when possible, and log off on time. These small actions can help prevent burnout, especially when workloads are higher.
Read more on how to improve mental health and wellbeing in the workplace
6. Inclusive Summer Activities for the Workplace
While summer is a great time to bring people together socially, it’s important to make sure activities are inclusive and respectful of people’s different circumstances.
Consider Accessibility and Preferences
Not everyone can attend in-person events or afford travel, and some people may prefer quieter or smaller gatherings. Offering a mix of options, such as virtual quizzes, team lunches, or casual drop-ins, ensures everyone feels included.
Keep Activities Optional
Summer activities should always be optional and not tied to work expectations. Focus on creating low-pressure, positive moments where people can connect and have fun.
Conclusion: Supporting Your Team Through Annual Leave During the Summer
Supporting your employees during the summer holidays requires planning and flexibility. By addressing the needs of working parents, ensuring a comfortable work environment during heatwaves, and being prepared for travel disruptions, you can provide a supportive and productive workplace.
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