When you’re on vacation, you’re on vacation. It’s kind of the whole point. Unless you’re a doctor and you’re on the beach relaxing and someone yells, «Is anyone here a doctor?» you’re off the hook for doing whatever it is that you do. You’re off the clock. More than that, you’re off the grid if you want to be. Nobody should be expected to answer work calls while they’re on vacation because the key thing about it is that you’re not being paid. If you’re taking PTO, you’re being paid to not be there. It would be counterintuitive if they needed you to be there.

That doesn’t stop many employers from asking too much of their employees. Some people don’t have the boundaries around work that they should, and thus assume others have the same issues. Sometimes people see vacation as simply being away from the desk, not away from the job.