I know when I talk about someone I don't know I use "they". It isn't to do with not knowing preferred pronouns, more like a type of formal speech about an unknown person. Maybe it is a regional/dialect thing? I would read an article about a person, and then still talk about them/they rather than he/her. I think it is tied to them being unfamiliar, as I wouldn't do that with a celebrity.

If i replace she in op's line "She wants a break" it feels like they are writing about someone more familiar to them. "They" implies distance between the observer and observed.