As Americans, we don’t often get the short end of the stick… but when I look at my vacations days, I can’t help but feel envious. Damn Europeans. As I hope for maybe two weeks (including weekends!), there is an Italian out there with 42 days of vacation, a Frenchman with 37 days and a German with 35 days…. and I get 13 days? When did we allow this to happen?
Do you know what happens in Europe in the summertime? Companies shut down. People are gone for a month and little work gets done in July and August. But guess what? Everybody comes back happy and rested. Sadly, for Americans a weekend is a vacation these days, and quite frankly that is horrendously bothersome.
How many vacation days do you get? Do you think Europeans have too much time off?
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leahrennes 
The vacation is one of the things I loved about moving to Stockholm–behind the maternity leave, of course (480 days). I work from home, but my husband gets six weeks off. You’re also right that most places close, which is kind of a pain in the neck. I’ve needed medical tests done and I have to wait until everyone comes back. But…I remember my newspaper days in the states. Ten days vacation/sick time, which meant if I took a sick day, I was stealing from my vacation! I don’t think Europeans have too much, I think Americans have too little.
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Hi! I definitely agree that Americans have to little vacation, but I am not sure there is a way to change that. Americans love to “live to work” whereas in Europe it is more “you work to live”…..
I’ve never been to Sweden but like you said…. a husband getting maternity leave for six weeks?! How can you beat that? That’s incredible!
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Amazingly, Americans don’t even use the little vacation they have.
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/americans-only-take-half-of-their-paid-vacation-2014-04-03
I just got back from a 3-week vacation, and I still have 3 weeks paid leave left. Thats besides the week I took off earlier this year and the 2 weeks off I’ve already scheduled for around Christmas. Greetings from the Netherlands 😉
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Really? So how much vacation do you have in total?
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Just over 8 weeks. I have some unused days left from last year, and won’t be able to use them all this year, too.
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8 weeks?! That’s what some people in the States get in 4 years. Does your boss take as much vacation time too?
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Certainly hope so. He actually gets a couple of days more due to his age.
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I need to move to your country haha 🙂
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Not everyone gets 8 weeks off here. The legal minimum is 4 weeks though. And sick days are just that – sick days, they’re not deducted from your holiday allowance.
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yeah i wish that was the case in the States
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