None of my stuff gets done when I'm gone, so a day off just makes things worse when I return to the office, so I end up spending my day off answering emails and taking phone calls.
A day off is basically just remote work that burns vacation time.
Ever hear a little story about a guy named Pavlov and his dog? Companies do this on purpose. They understaff on purpose, and claim they can't afford even just one more person, not even an intern. "We just need you guys to give 110%!" They play on your guilt. It's either:
"Why can't you get your work done? Everybody else gets their work done." All you have to do is never sleep or take vacation.
Or.
"You had to stop to pee? You fucking monster. Look at what you're doing to your boss/coworkers! You are literally killing them!"
And yet they can somehow still afford to hire 2-3 people to replace you when you leave.
In my case it really is true. I work for a very small city with less than a dozen employees, and we all wear a lot of hats. I process permits, coordinate development projects, am the GIS department, and have been known to flag traffic when there's a road collapse.
The State keeps passing new laws to prevent cities from getting more income, so we can't hire more people.
I don't disagree. We'll spend $60,000 on engineering reviews making sure a billionaire's new house won't flood the street, then another $200,000 in court to tell him he can't build what he wants, then another $200,000 forcing him to tear out down after he built it anyway, and all we can charge him is 10 grand because of politicians.