Nearly 40 percent of 4,600 full-time workers surveyed said they would choose more time off work than a $5,000 annual pay hike. That was an almost 20-percent jump from three years ago when Salary.com asked the same question, and represented a significant shift in employee thinking.

Why give up the cash?

"Workers are saying they need a break from the stresses caused by increasing hours, reduced staff and the push for more productivity," Tim Driver, a senior vice president at the Needham, Mass.-based software company, told the Associated Press.

"It's also possible that following several years of layoffs and cost-cutting, an increasing number of workers are less inclined to believe that placing work above personal concerns will pay off in career advancement and pay."