In many parts of Europe, it’s common for workers to take off weeks at a time, especially during the summer. Envious Americans say it’s time for the U.S. to follow suit.
Some 66% of U.S. workers say companies should adopt extended vacation policies, like a month off in August, in their workplaces, according to a Morning Consult survey of 1,047 U.S. adults.
As a European, I just want to know where Americans get all these fairy tales about European life, lol. Do you think the people in France that they keep admiring so much are protesting because of nothing?
Stop pretending Europe is some kind of paradise. It isn’t. I don’t get the whole month of August off on paid vacation. That’s a straight-faced lie.
Then you should be fighting for weeks vacation too. I notice you were very specific about not getting the whole month of August off, how many weeks do you get in vacation?
I get 21 days off in a year. If I want to take Christmas off, that’s like three or four days off of that, plus my birthday maybe. Most people take like two different week-long holidays off throughout the year so they can spend some time with family.
Personally, I am more concerned with affording food or going hungry.
There’s an official EU article here that states that “staff has the right to at least 4 weeks of paid holidays per year” in all 27 member countries. Are you not from one of those countries or are you being messed around by your employer?
Either way, when you compare it to America where people get a measly 11 days paid time off average, there is a hell of a lot to say about the European way of life.
That sounds like it includes holidays too, it’s not just vacation days you can take whenever you want.
But agreed, it’s still better than 11 days, but it’s not “anyone can just leave for a month and half”.
I am German. According to German law as I refer to here, the four weeks are calculated on a basis of a six-day work week, which in practice almost nobody works. Most people work four or five days, and the right to holidays is scaled accordingly.
How about maternity leave for men and women? What’s your minimum wage?
Minimum wage is 12€, meaning $12.96, which is way lower than California’s for example. There is no paternity leave.
Europe isn’t a paradise but everything else looks like one if you’re currently in Hell.
I think the point is that it’s possible, in theory, maybe depending on your employer. But you get close to that amount of vacation time in total. The majority of Americans don’t get more than two weeks for the entire year, and many get none at all, only sick time. Many Americans can’t even take just two consecutive weeks off any time of the year.
You not getting vacation doesn’t mean it’s not common for others. Definitely common to get a month of vacation in summer in Romania, mandatory in Sweden, and based on comments here it’s common in other countries too.
Also, even if you don’t use your time off to get a full month of vacation, it is a fact that most of European countries mandate a minimum amount of annual paid time off that’s more than double of what most get in the US.