As almost 16% of companies in the world are fully remote, it isn't an easy task to manage holidays for all those people. However, respecting your team's local holidays can go a long way toward raising your employee morale. Anyone who has ever had a global workforce knows the challenges of diversity management and knows that every little bit helps. As you diversify your ever-growing workforce, so does the company culture. You can't expect to celebrate them all, and you can't expect your employees only to celebrate yours.
But what if you are in conflicting time zones? What if your company and its higher management are in the US? While most of your employees are in Europe, Asia, or Africa? Then it can get a little tricky, and organizing holidays to overcome those difficulties can be challenging. In this article, we will explore ideas on how to manage holiday policy for your global team. Here are our six thoughts in no particular order:
Have a local HR Manager
When you have a local HR Manager, you have someone intimate with all the local laws and customs. Holiday management becomes infinitely simpler. Your HR Manager can help your workforce by booking annual leave and making a holiday calendar. The cons in this scenario are the extra cost. Hiring a local means expanding your workforce, but it is worth it in the long run. Not just because they can manage staff holidays more quickly, but can generally bridge the gap in communication with your remote staff.
Create a Custom Holyday Schedule
As we mentioned, have someone who knows your local workforce create a custom holiday schedule. At first, this might seem like a hassle and might take a long time, but it will be worth it in the end. For example, some countries pay out the day after Christmas, and others don't. If you explore and research which do or don't every time, your HR will never have time for anything else. That's why a premade custom holiday schedule works best and is a great way to manage holidays.
Don't Shy Away From Celebrating Anything
Don't shy away from celebrating anything your employees celebrate. A lot of times, it is enough that you acknowledge the special day. Of course, the big celebrations like Christmas, Chinese New Year, or Eid-Al Fitr are well known and hard to miss, but the smaller ones are also important.
You can efficiently run an anonymous survey from your employees; the ones with more requests for a holiday can be on the list. You can make a unique slack channel for holidays or send out a special mailer for those people who celebrate with a custom greeting. Imagine your employees' joy when they get a May the Fourth be with you in the inbox on Star Wars day!
Don't Send Emails on Weekends
When we say don't send emails on weekends, you should set clear boundaries on when your employees should work. There is a time and place for everything; the same goes for your job. We can't expect workers to live and breathe their job and not burn out eventually. However, we are more mindful of their mental health by encouraging them to take some time off and take holiday requests when the rest of their friends do.
Time Off Donation
Time off donation should be the norm. In a world where only 28% of companies allow workers to donate their unused time off to their colleagues, we have to be that company. We shouldn't be gleeful when our employees don't use their time off. After all, they earned it with dedication and hard work. Why not let them donate what they can't use to employees who need that and manage holidays that way too? This one is a win-win for the company. It makes you look magnanimous and shows you care for your employees' mental health.
Amazing HR Software
Amazing HR software is a must if you want to manage holidays easily. Manage your HR's stress level and reward them with customizable HR software. You can't expect them to manage holidays and be on top of everything else in your company. With customizable HR software, you will easily manage absences and leave tracking. In addition, you can have your custom calendar and automate the process as much as is reasonable without compromising on personalization.
Conclusion
With globalization and diversifying our workforce come a ton of benefits. Not only do we benefit from different points of view and input, but we are also richer for it. We must enrich our company culture and be inclusive and open-minded to our employees. The bare minimum is to manage holidays and show that we celebrate more cultures, not just our own.