StCirq

I run my own business, and I've always followed the European model of vacation time because I believe it's necessary to live a balanced life. So I take about 3 months' "vacation" a year. I spend about two months a year at our house in the Dordogne, and about a month elsewhere, traveling in the USA usually, to visit relatives or just to travel. I have this insane view that traveling is as productive as schooling or as working, so our family spends a great deal of time on the road. All in all, I spend about 3 months out of the year abroad - and in future will spend even more as I head toward retirement.

scumpy

<BR><BR>I worked for the U.S. government. We got 13 days of vacation time a year for the first fifteen years and 26 days a year after that. That is WAY out of the norm on the generous side for vacation time. Even so, with the 26 days or five weeks after fifteen years, you would be ostracized by everybody, including peers, if you even suggested the radical idea of taking all five weeks at once. The reasoning seemed to be that if you thought you could be absent for five weeks at a time, you must not be doing any work. And of course, you wouldn't really WANT to be gone for five weeks because nobody was going to come in and do your work when you were gone. it would take you months and months to ever get caught up again.

abc

Allan, please let sleeping dogs lie.

susan

We decided to take our first trip to Europe this summer (married 25 years). So my husband told his employer (months in advance) that he was taking the month of August off. We had an incredible 3 weeks in Europe and upon our return, he received a call from his office telling him that there was no need for him to return to work, as there just wasn't the workload to give him! The culture in Canada is similar to the States and I say, it SUCKS!

xxx

Yes, the europeans get extensive vacation times, but these are SOCIALIST countries with incredibly high taxes. So, the reality is that by giving 50% of their income to the govt in taxes,they get a few extra days of leave, BFD!.I would rather have my 19 paid days off and only give 15% to the IRS, then work for nothing, other than 4 weeks of vacation. The europeans pride themselves on this issue but they also hate paying so much in taxes. You can't have it both ways. I live in Germany, and this is a topic that like religion and politics is best left unspoken. BTW not everybody gets paid vacaton. The girl who waits on me every morning at my village bakery is forced to take two weeks unpaid vacation, whether she wants to or not, regardless of finances. She thinks that Americans have it good, since our taxes are much more reasonable. And most employers will not force you to take a vacation, you are more than welcome to work yourself to death. Just my observation and opinion based on living here for the last 5 years.

Keith

I work in the UK and get 35 days holiday a year, and, yes, I currently pay 23% tax. On the other hand, I get healthcare free, a decent education system, some protection should I become unemployed, and the knowledge that those less fortunate than me will be taken care of.<BR><BR>By the way, xxx, I don't think that you could describe the UK as a socialist country - or, for that matter, Italy or Spain - and I don't think that Jacques Chirac would like it much either. Although you live in Germany, you don't seem to understand the fundamental difference between Europe and the US. Nobody likes paying high taxes; but explain to Europeans (particularly in the UK) that tax cuts mean poorer public services, education services and health services, and most will choose to keep taxes at the same level. Incidentally, the Liberal Democrats in the UK fought the last two General Elections with a pledge to RAISE taxes - and increased their representation in Parliament both times.

Jim Rosenberg

When it comes to societal attitudes toward vacation time, I really wish we could improve that aspect of life in the U.S. I feel very fortunate to have the situation I have with respect to that, but it's all too rare.

Therese

I get four weeks of vacation per year, quite generous by U.S. standards. But it doesn't roll over to the next year, and I've never yet managed to take it all. For several years I was unable to take any at all (due to severe understaffing, now partially resolved), and that is just my hard luck. I don't get paid for unused leave either. <BR><BR>I am hoping (yet again) that this year I will be able to take two weeks at a stretch so as to take the family to Europe. Doing so will be seen in a very dim light by my employer and colleagues, but is unlikely to result in my termination. I will return to a mountain of work, but then that's nothing new.<BR><BR>I do manage to travel to Europe fairly frequently, but I'm working when I do it (and believe me, it's still even if you're in Europe).

Ira

Hi Joanna,<BR><BR> I live in the US. One of the reasons I only take 2-3 week trips is that I can't afford to go for much longer times. <BR><BR> As far as comparing vacation time and taxes, one has to calculate the *total* leave time and the *total* tax.<BR><BR> In the US total paid holiday time is usually about 10 - 15 days vacation + 12 - 14 days legal holidays + 0 - 2 personal leave = 22 - 31 days off (4 weeks).<BR><BR> US taxes are Federal 10-28%, State and local 2 - 10%, FICA 6 - 9%, sales 0 - 9%, for a range of 18 - 56%. Some of us have real estate and personal property taxes on top of that (about 1%)<BR><BR> I estimate that Europeans pay about 40% income tax + 17% VAT = 57%. Am I correct.<BR><BR> So what do Americans get in place of time off?<BR><BR> I have my own ideas, but prefer to let others give their opinions.<BR><BR>

Richard

You may get &quot;free&quot; healthcare in the UK, but it's not very good healthcare. Unless you consider having to wait 18 months for a bypass to be good care.

x

I live in the states and get four weeks off a year and 11 holidays. Not to mention and day or two off here and there for &quot;sick&quot; time. I don't feel like I'm &quot;deprived&quot; of time off at all.

y

Of course you don't feel screwed 'x' since you have about twice as much time off as a lot of people.<BR><BR>Try working in the stock market/brokerage field where you get 6, count'em 6, holidays a year. Yes, even the day after Thanksgiving is a market day. Two weeks vacation for 7 years when you get your 3rd week. 4th week at 20 years.

joe

Ok, I get:<BR><BR>3 weeks vacation<BR>6 Personal Days<BR>8 Sick Days<BR>9 Holidays<BR>Every other Friday off (Work 9 hour days to make up the difference)<BR><BR>So I get a total of 52 days off per year!

x

For a truly helpful post there Joe why don't you include where &quot;here&quot; is?

Sheila

Just for interest, the German bakery worker MUST get 20 days paid leave a year in terms of EU legislation.

Sherry

I get 4 weeks, BUT I have to bill so many hours per year (2,420--and that's billing time, not time at the office), that it's unlikely I'd take all 4 weeks. <BR><BR>The kicker? I may be an American, but I work for a British firm with offices all over Europe. Why do I get the feeling they don't treat their European employees exactly the same?

freta

So, so informative and timely, now what do we do with all this gibberish.

mary

I couldn't care less if the economy is twice as big - I want better balance &amp; greater quality of life.

Maurice

I work for a large mining co. in N. Canada - we start at 2 weeks/yr. like everyone else (labour law is 2 weeks, rising to 3 after 5 years).<BR>Our acccumulates much better - after 25 years I get 25 days' vacation. The rules say you can't accrue more than 3 weeks. On top of that they used to have 1 week a year accruable &quot;special leave&quot; due to remoteness, but after finding nobody was taking it they converted it to an extra 5 days' annual vacation! After 25 years (cabin fever!) I get 31 days a year. This is way out of the norm from USA and Canada, where 4 weeks/yr after 10 years is considered generous.<BR>A Canadian comedian described us once as &quot;unarmed Americans with health care.&quot; Marginal tax rates are higher - about 50% (on a decent income, you will pay 30 to 35% to the governments). As a note to the health care discussions - Canada is good if you need emergency care (usually). For anything discretionary, it risks being postponed. (4 months for a gall bladder ultrasound!) <BR>When counting tax rates here or Europe vs. the USA, don't forget to count health care costs. They are included in our taxes, whereas many Americans (or their employers) cough up an extra couple of hundred a month on top of taxes.

Leslie

I think that you will find that the amount of vacation also varies by industry. Many businesses are also combining both vacation time and sick time into one package, called combined leave or paid time off. For example, if you once received 10 days of vacation and 10 days of sick leave per year, you will now have 20 days per year to do with as you like. It is the mindset of many that they are granted 10 sick days per year, so they might as well use them for whatever reasons they like. <BR><BR>One of the primarly reasons that businesses do not allow you to rollover a lot of vacation each year, is that in each subsequent year the business will be paying for unused accrued vacation at a higher rate. For example, for simplicity's sake if you earn $500 per week in the current year, and you get a 5% salary increase, and you rollover your vacation to the following year, the business is then paying you $525 for vacation that was budgeted at $500, obviously making it more expensive for the business if it is carried over.<BR><BR>I get 25 days of combined leave per year, plus 11 holidays. I can only carry any unused vacation over to the end of the fiscal year (June 30th), although the vacation allowance begins on January 1, effectively allowing me 18 months to use my vacation time. However, only 10 days may be carried over into the next fiscal year. The only time more days can be carried over is due to heavy workloads. <BR><BR>Also, some businesses don't pay overtime for certain staff positions. I have a position like that, however, I am comped extra time for the extra hours I do work, but those extra hours are on a use it or lose it basis. When I accrue a lot of extra hours, I usually turn 3 day weekends into 4 day weekends in order to get those hours off the books.