Managing Staff Holidays Without Burnout This Summer

Summer might bring the promise of sunshine and well-earned breaks, but for many businesses, it also brings a familiar challenge: how to keep the day-to-day going when covering staff absences.

With over three quarters (77%) of UK adults planning to take a summer holiday in 2025, maintaining service levels, protecting your people's work-life balance, and keeping productivity on track can feel like spinning plates. The good news? With the right planning, temporary support, and a few smart adjustments, it’s absolutely possible to keep the lights on, without overloading your core team or compromising performance.

Plan ahead

Feels like a no brainer but the best way to navigate the summer holiday season is to get ahead of it.

• Highlight key project deadlines and customer commitments early, so your team can plan their own holidays – and their team’s – around them where appropriate.
• Encourage managers to review holiday bookings early in the year and spot where team capacity might dip. Review this regularly so gaps don’t become a last-minute surprise.
• Think beyond individual absences – what happens if two key people are off at once? Be mindful of fairness too, especially when approving time off during popular periods, like school holidays or bank holiday weekends.

Focus on what really matters

What actually needs to get done? When you’re working with fewer hands, prioritising is everything. Support your teams in identifying the tasks that have the largest impact and temporarily scaling back on the ‘nice to haves’.

Daily stand-ups and/or weekly planning check-ins can be helpful for staying aligned and adapting quickly if workloads shift. Make sure line managers are communicating clearly with each other on staff availability to support each other and manage expectations.

Protect your people

We’ve all been there. The pressure to ‘just keep going’ can easily snowball into burnout if not addressed. With fewer team members around, those remaining often feel the weight of additional responsibilities, which can quickly take a toll.

• Keep communication going. Encourage managers to check in regularly and promote a culture where it’s okay to speak up if you’re struggling or have concerns.
• Be extra vigilant for signs of stress or fatigue.
• Recognition also matters when preventing burnout. Celebrating small wins, saying thank you or even simply acknowledging the extra effort going in can help keep motivation up when people are doing more with less.

Leverage tech and tools

Regardless of your thoughts on AI, if there is ever a time to get smart with automation, it’s now. Workflow tools, automated processes and AI-powered systems can reduce the manual load and keep things ticking over when you have fewer people.

We’re not talking about job replacement. Think automatic email replies for common queries, scheduling software to keep appointments on track or templates and playbooks that make decision-making easier. Even something as simple as sharing team-wide task boards can increase transparency and reduce the need for constant check-ins and meetings.

Embrace temporary support

When you know a gap is coming, why not plan to fill it? Temporary staff cover can make a huge difference during the summer months especially. Whether it’s covering frontline roles, supporting admin-heavy periods or keeping customer response times in check.

Recruitment agencies are on hand to help businesses, providing fast, reliable cover that integrates seamlessly with existing teams. The key is onboarding well: give temps a clear brief, assign a buddy if possible and treat them as part of the team from day one. The smoother the integration, the quicker they’ll add value.

Managing workloads during the summer holiday period isn’t just about survival, it’s a chance to show your people you value their well-being, even when things are stretched. By planning ahead, using temporary support wisely and protecting your team from burnout, you’re not just keeping the lights on. You’re building a more resilient, adaptable culture that will last long after summer fades.

Need Summer holiday cover?

Meridian is here to help you bridge the gap with high-quality temporary staff who hit the ground running. Whether you need last-minute cover for forward-planned support, we're here to help. Get in touch with us today.