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Lillian Mackie

Bank manager,

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Human resource policies that allow employees the opportunity to work for so many years at a discounted salary to allow for time away

What I am proposing is the opportunity for employees to choose to be able to work for however many years at a reduced salary that enables the remainder of their salary each year to be put away for a period of absence from their job. This time away could be used to volunteer time to their community or the time could also be used to travel abroad to mentor and learn from other individuals in the same line of work. This would enable the sharing of good business practices, it would bring the world together by working closer together and we would learn more about our cultural differences. We would then learn to embrace those differences and respect all human beings.

Topics: Business Processes human capital
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    Anne Dagen 10+

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    Mar 22 2012: I might be reluctant to accept a reduced salary for this because there is always the risk that, when I wanted that sabbatical, it would co-incide with economic problems and the fact of being away would then increase the risk of redundancy. There are so many uncertainties in the workplace that it would feel like a major gamble to give up salary today for the possibility of extended leave in the future.

    As a freelancer it's an abstract issue for me, but if I were an employee I would prefer a policy that allowed for unpaid leave. Of course it would be up to me to do the financial planning and saving but for someone wanting to carry out a personal project, that sort of discipline is good preparation.

    • Lillian Mackie

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      Mar 23 2012: Thanks for your perspective but as you pointed out it would be up to the individual to do the financial planning so whether it was unpaid leave or a sabbatical the individual would have to plan for this time if they wanted the opportunity. I see the potential to have people from different cultural backgrounds working together for a common goal, learning from eachother and closing the cultural barriers.
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        Anne Dagen 10+

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        Mar 23 2012: The difference between the salary sacrifice option and unpaid time off is that, with the salary sacrifice, financial management has been left with the employer. If the employee has to save and plan, the evidence is that there is a substantially greater commitment to making good use of the time and opportunity. Long term salary sacrifice has been shown not to provide anything like this level of motivation.

        • Lillian Mackie

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          Mar 25 2012: I still believe that in today's work environment, very demanding, ast paced there needs to be some type of incentive to have some time to regenerate and recoup from the stresses of current wor environment. Our family lives are suffering because time is limited and much to be done in a very short period of time. An individual who has had sufficient time to regenerate is more productive and committed. Vacation policies do not satisfy this need. I do think that this could allow for more people being employed and more people given different opportunities to grow in their careers
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