Babel’s Sabbatical Policy: make it count

Babel offers its employees a sabbatical: one month off, paid. It is a benefit that is not necessarily unusual, but its frequency is; employees can request a sabbatical after just three years. And then again, three years after they return, and so on. This workplace benefit offers employees a chance to properly switch-off, unwind and explore new opportunities.

As one of Babel’s longest-serving employees, I have taken two sabbaticals to date. In 2018 I travelled up the east coast of Australia for four weeks, and just recently I took a month off to enjoy family time and a couple of getaways (including a wedding in Poland!), and complete a Distance Learning course, on Understanding Mental Health First Aid and Mental Health Advocacy in the Workplace.

So, just for fun, I thought I would create a sabbatical-themed list of extra-curricular activities you could undertake to inspire you and really make your time off count!

S – Start something new. You’ve got a month to get into a good book, a new TV series or even a career development course.

A – Acquaintances. Old and new: the flexibility of a whole month off means you have brunches, lunches, and afternoon tea-availability to meet up with friends and family who you might not have seen in a while.

B – Bake. Cakes. Enough said! I never usually have enough time…

B – Bend. Yoga, Pilates, or just incorporating stretch exercises into each day. Get into good habits that your posture will thank you for, away from sitting at your desk.

A – Art. This could be taking in someone else’s art (at a museum or gallery, or even a show), or creating your own.

T – Travel. Locally; abroad; for a week; for a month; your options are wide open!

I – Indulge. Whether it is in a bit of gardening, or retail therapy at 3pm on a Wednesday afternoon – with drinks!

C – Culture. Rock concerts, National Trust outings, the Angkor Wat temple in Cambodia. Cultural experiences come in all different shapes and sizes.

A – Alarm. Get rid of it. Enjoy a month to catch up on sleep!

L – Learning. This hasn’t been left last on purpose at all. A sabbatical is a great way to take time out to dedicate yourself to learning something, whether it is an online course or in-person class or lesson. Add a new string to your bow and feel all the more accomplished for it.

This year at Babel, in addition to me, we have another three employees enjoying the loyalty reward of a sabbatical. One of my colleagues made their sabbatical count further by incorporating their wedding and honeymoon into the time off, and another colleague has chosen to coincide their sabbatical with the August school holiday period. However you choose to use your paid time off is entirely up to you.

It is this flexibility and opportunity that helps Babel win recognition through employee culture awards, and makes it a great place to work!

If this blog went a little way in whetting your appetite for an enriching, invaluable time out of work, then please don’t hesitate to check out our ‘Working at Babel’ webpage for more information on joining the Babel team to reap the rewards we have on offer!