'Is this fair?' - Thousands of Irish workers will respond to work emails over Christmas

MANY IRISH workers will find it difficult to take a break over the holidays.

That's according to a new survey, which has found that one in four Irish workers expect they will be responding to work emails over Christmas.

The survey also found that over 10% of people who receive presents from their employers managers or colleagues tend to re-gift them.

The survey of 1,000 full-time employees in Ireland was commissioned by Workhuman and conducted by Pollfish to gain insights into attitudes and expectations around the holidays, including how work cultures support employees during the season, as well as gifting and giving habits.

The research suggests that many find it difficult to take a break over the holidays; 22% of employees say they will not be able to fully switch off from work over their Christmas holidays, while 28% admitted that their large workload would prevent them from taking as much time off as they would like over the holiday period.

The survey also found that as people get into the festive spirit, the majority of employees who receive end-of-year bonuses are using them to pay for Christmas presents.

More than a quarter (27%) of respondents who receive end-of-year bonuses say they are essential for affording Christmas presents, while a further 53% said they alleviate some of the financial burden.

Despite this, over half (51%) of respondents would prefer to receive smaller spot bonuses throughout the year rather than one larger lump sum at the end of the year.

When it comes to gifting trends in the workplace, 44% of employees receive Christmas gifts from their colleagues and 27% do a ‘Secret Santa’ at work.

Some 32% get presents from their employer or manager and, of these, 95% say they usually, or always, like them.

However, 12% admitted they usually re-gift them to someone else.