Bumble gives employees a week off to prevent burnout

The company, which went public earlier this year, told its 700 employees to switch off and focus on themselves,

The pandemic has rightly increased employers’ focus on employee wellbeing and many companies, including dating app Bumble, are taking matters into their own hands.

Bumble, which allows women to make the first move when it comes to dating, has closed down all of its offices this week to help employees combat workplace stress.

The company, which went public earlier this year, told its 700 employees to switch off and focus on themselves, the BBC reports.

A senior executive shared the news on Twitter, noting that Whitney Wolfe Herd, the company’s founder, made decision “having correctly intuited our collective burnout”.

In April, Bumble announced that all of its employees would get a paid, fully offline one-week vacation in June.

A company spokeswoman confirmed a few customer support staff would be working to assist customers with potential issues. These members of staff will then be given time off to make sure they take a whole week of leave.

Bumble isn’t the only company offering extra time off for employees in a bid to ease burnout. Earlier this year, LinkedIn announced it would be doing the same starting on April 5.

Speaking at the time, Teuila Hanson, LinkedIn’s chief people officer, said: “We wanted to make sure we could give them something really valuable, and what we think is most valuable right now is time for all of us to collectively walk away.”

Similarly to Bumble, LinkedIn said a core team of employees would continue to work during that week but would be able to schedule the time off at a later date.

By giving most employees time off at the same time, companies ensure staff aren’t inundated by emails, meeting notes, tasks mounting in their absence.

You want the goodness of your vacation to last a little bit when you come back,” Hanson said.

I for one think this is a great move. It shows employers are taking employee wellbeing seriously and prioritizing the needs of the workforce, which in turn will have greater long-term benefits for the business.

It may have taken a global pandemic for this shift to take place, but I really hope it lasts well beyond it.