Employees are being offered overnight stays in remote off-grid cabins where digital devices are locked away as companies try to combat workplace stress.
An increasing number of employers are paying for their staff to spend time in nature without the interruption of smartphones as a way to prevent the growing threat of burnout.
Britons work the longest hours in Europe with an average of 42 hours per week and survey data shows that 88 per cent of UK employees have experienced some sort of burnout in the last two years.
Unplugged, the UK’s first digital detox holiday company, is hoping to combat this by working directly with employers to offer designated time away from devices as a company perk.
Scores of discrete eco-cabins have been erected in rural areas across England and Wales where guests can stay for three or four nights, without wifi, from £390.
The “out of office” scheme enables employers to buy vouchers for their staff to use at any point during the working year when they need a break. Employers can either purchase a few vouchers for a particular team or sign up the whole company with corporate discounts.
Smartphones are kept in a locked box and guests are provided with an old-school Nokia mobile for emergencies. They are also given an instant camera with a roll of film, a cassette player and a selection of tapes from artists that have not bothered the charts in a while. A compass, torch and paper map of the local area are also included in the digital detox kit.
Before their stay guests are sent a digital welcome pack, which includes information on how time away from their smartphone might feel. The Unplugged experts advise guests that at first there will be an “adjustment period”, where they may find themselves reaching for their absent phone and feel a “spark of anxiety”. This will be followed by a “feeling of freedom” that should be harnessed to do something such as read a book or explore. By the end of the stay guests will feel “entirely present” and comfortable being away from their phone, said the guidance.
The cabins run on solar power and have an eco-compost toilet. There is a gas hob to cook on, an indoor wood burner and fire pit outside.
Since the corporate wellness scheme was launched last year, Unplugged has booked 130 employee stays, in addition to the guests who have stayed independently. They hope to have more than 40 cabins in the UK early next year with further plans to expand abroad.
Maurice O’Brien, co-founder of the recruitment start-up Flexa, has been offering digital detox stays for his employees for the last 15 months. “It’s really important to give people the opportunity to have some head space and know that it’s OK to be away from work for a while,” he said.
“I am seeing more people taking some time away from screens and realising that work life balance involves actually detaching yourself from work, We’re in a world where you can be contacted constantly and thankfully companies are increasingly embracing the fact that people need a bit of time away, we’re starting to see that as a trend.”
Josh Sanders, 24, a personal brand manager, said he was “ecstatic” when he discovered his company offered Unplugged stays as a benefit. He stayed in a cabin in rural Essex with his girlfriend in September.
“We read a lot, walked around the local area and in the woods and stocked up on food to cook,” he said. “During the stay, my brain switched off. Working with clients I find my brain is constantly turned on in order to be quick with things. Having no notifications or buzzes allowed me to switch off completely. By the end I felt like a completely new person, my brain felt fully rested.”
Employee benefits, such as the gym or cinema tickets, usually have a 15 per cent uptake, according to Hector Hughes, chief executive of Unplugged. But with the off-grid cabin stays they have seen an 80 per cent engagement.
“People are expected to still be reachable while on holiday,” he said. “But for a boss to say, we’re literally sending you on a digital detox where you are offline for three days, I think sends a really healthy message.”
Hughes, 29, had the idea for the retreats in 2019 while working at a tech start up with Unplugged’s co-founder, Ben Elliot. On the brink of burnout, Hughes travelled to the Himalayas to spend ten days at a silent Buddhist retreat. He said: “The best thing was, they took your phone away at the start – you were completely cut off from the online world.”
My off-grid adventure
My “digital detox” experience began on a dirt track, with a small sign pointing to where the car should be left. There was a lock-up shed with boots and firewood inside and a cart on wheels.
In the distance, at the top of a sloped field, I saw the cabin. It was a bitterly cold December afternoon, but the sun had broken through some storm clouds and, although the site is just an hour’s drive from London, this quiet, golden field felt very remote.
I had persuaded a friend to join me — the thought of spending the night alone in a rural cabin without the use of my phone was too much.
Realising the cart is for our luggage and supplies, we loaded it up and took turns dragging it up the muddy hill. The cabin was basic but stylish.
A digital detox kit provided everything needed to live life (or a night) without our phones. Inside is an old mobile phone with Snake, the game, an instant camera with film, compass and torch. The kit comes in a wooden box, which is used to lock away smartphones.
We spent the afternoon and evening playing Scrabble, listening to the unfashionable cassettes provided with the cabin and remembering why selfies were only made flattering with the invention of smartphones.
I had told the office I would not have access to emails or be able to take calls. My family knew I was “off grid for work” and had the number of the cabin Nokia, strictly for emergencies. I sent some WhatsApps on the journey down, letting some of the more active group chats know I won’t be contributing for a while. As I turned my phone onto aeroplane mode I experienced a small buzz of satisfaction knowing that I was uncontactable and that was absolutely fine.
As someone who isn’t social media obsessed and is often late to reply to messages and emails, I did not feel the panic of being without my phone that I had been warned of. But having a guilt-free pass to ignore anyone trying to contact me is something I would definitely like to experience again.