Grid asks why Americans Are Terrible at Taking Time Off.
Workers in the European Union, for instance, receive a minimum of four weeks of paid holidays each year under the Working Time Directive. Some countries set the bar even higher, the report said. France guarantees workers at least 30 days of paid annual leave.
Other high-income nations outside the EU also beat out the U.S. when it comes to vacation time. Australia, New Zealand and Switzerland have set the minimum at four weeks of paid annual leave.
So how do we stack up?
Conclusion
This assessment of international requirements for paid vacation and paid holidays reveals a significant
disparity between the United States and the rest of the world’s rich countries. The United States is the
only advanced economy that does not mandate any paid vacation time for workers and it is one of the
only countries that does not require employers to offer at least some paid holidays.
Without a legal requirement for paid vacation and paid holidays, about one-fourth of the US labor
force has no paid vacation or paid holidays throughout the course of the work year. The estimated
sum of the average paid vacation and paid holidays offered for private-sector employees in the United
States —10 vacation days and six paid holidays in total— falls short of the minimum annual leave
requirement for all EU countries as well as the average of paid vacations and paid holidays for all
countries reviewed in this report (about 22 paid vacation days and 10 paid holidays).
(free graphic via clipart.com)
