Coinbase seeks to balance intense work environment with four ‘recharge weeks’ off for employees

Coinbase is testing out giving employees four ‘recharge weeks’ off in a bid to balance out what it has called an ‘intense’ working environment. 

In a blog posted on Monday, the company wrote: “The bottom line: We work incredibly hard at Coinbase — for most of us, Coinbase is the most intense place we’ve ever worked. That intensity is only magnified by the current moment in crypto, and it often results in long days and long weeks.”

The experiment will allow roughly one recharge week per quarter in 2022, when “nearly the entire company will shut down.” This is to allow all employees some down time without work piling up, the company said.

Although recharge weeks are — in theory — in addition to annual leave, the company has encouraged employees to schedule vacations to coincide with them. 

It added that the move is to ensure its pace of growth is sustainable for the long term. Coinbase does not expect to offer this perk beyond 2022. 

Outlining why the company is such an all-consuming place to work, it referenced its culture document: “We are a winning team, not a family, and have high expectations for performance and delivering results…. We have an intense work culture, and are regularly pushed out of our comfort zones.”

Long working hours are justified, it said, because “the risk of missing out on a huge opportunity is too great.”

Amid the fight for talent in tech and crypto, offering perks, such as more time off, alongside big compensation packages, is becoming increasingly common. 

Earlier this week, e-commerce platform Bolt said it would permanently switch to a four-day working week after an experiment with reduced hours led to improved productivity. 

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