Changes in Annual Paid Vacation Behavior during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

This study focuses on the realities of annual paid vacation during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study uses quantitative text analysis to examine the results of a questionnaire survey conducted through a research company commissioned by the author. The analysis results suggest that with the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, people’s lifestyles changed significantly, and annual leave-taking behaviors also changed. However, the spread of COVID-19 did not fundamentally change behaviors relating to annual paid vacations. The impact of previous studies and the subsequent measures to promote the use of annual paid vacation still remained among workers who saw an increase in the number of annual paid vacation days used compared to before the COVID-19 pandemic. While many lose sight of the purpose of annual paid vacation due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this finding’s significance may be that it shows many previous studies on annual paid vacation have led to policy proposals with subsequent results that have been passed on to society.