Under US law, employers are not required to offer paid holiday time. VideoAmp does not have a holiday policy – employees are free to take as much time as they need, with full pay.
‘Unlimited’ holiday policies have become popular with many tech firms in the past few years, but it’s not common for workers under these schemes to take months off each year.
At VideoAmp, some people take up to six weeks, others rarely leave their desks. Michael Allman, a data engineer who enjoys overseas travel, says the policy does not mean he can take half the year off. “It means you talk to your supervisor, you have to be responsible about making sure that you’re getting your projects done, you’re collaborating with your team mates and you’re not unavailable too much,” he says.
Sonya Apreleva, a senior data scientist, says she does look at her work email while on holiday, to check on a job or fix a problem. But, she says: “That’s part of life.”