I'm curious about holiday time in the USA...?

Question

...In Canada, once you work for your employer for 1 year, you are entitled to 2 weeks paid holidays. Basically it 4% of your income over that year, paid out before or after your holiday.
After working for the same employer 5 years, you're entitled to 3 weeks paid holiday time. After working 10 years, you're entitled to 5 weeks paid holidays.
I've just completed 10 years this summer, so I'm taking 3 weeks now, and 2 weeks at Christmas time. I did live in the States many years ago, and nothing like this existed. Has the US initiated any sort of holiday plan similar to this, on a State or Federal level?

This holiday plan applies to every type of employment, whether you wash dishes in a restaurant , sweep side walks, or if you're CEO of a corporation.

Most of the answers I've gotten thus far were very informative, and I thank you. There were a couple however that really disappoint me. Why is it that when people don't understand the first thing about another country, they feel the need to lash out in such a negative manor.
Perhaps they were just showing their age, or level of maturity?

Answer 1

jingoist richardz74 said: Our country gives incentives to work, not incentives to be lazy.

Source(s):

USA...Greatest economy in the history of the world.

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Man, what country with the initials USA do YOU live in. The one I live in, commonly referred to as America, has never provided me or anyone else I can think of an incentive to work. My incentive came from within myself.

There are millions, though, who do have incentives to be lazy. They collect welfare, food stamps, and (usually illegitimate) child credit. And they are rewarded with more welfare for each additional child they irresponsibly bring into this world.

You need a serious reality check, dude.

Oh, and to answer your question, as someone else said, there is no national policy. Each employer sets their own, and it varies greatly.

Answer 2

the employer decides what the vacation policy will be. typically it's a couple weeks paid leave in the first through five years. it goes up to three weeks for five to ten years of service and at the ten year mark you usually get five weeks of paid leave. the business must compete. some employers offer more vacation time to lure workers. each deal is negotiated differently. even within the same company, a manager has the authority to offer the candidate a week or two extra pay to take the job.

Answer 3

Actually, my company has that. Two weeks after a year of employment, 3 weeks after 5 years, 5 weeks after 10 years. My husband's company has the same policy. He's coming up on his 10 year anniversary there too! We both work for private companies, by the way.

Answer 4

From the day I started I began earning paid time off for whatever days I wanted, up to three weeks a year. In addition to that, I get two weeks of holidays for days the office is closed (Christmas, Thanksgiving, 4th of July, etc)

Sooo... a total of five paid weeks off every year. And that's as an hourly employee who is new at the company.

Answer 5

There isn't a law about it in the US. Most companies do give at least two weeks off per year. (If they didn't, then most people wouldn't want to work there.) But some people would rather have less time off, and get paid more, and in the US, companies have the freedom to let them do that. Because our government doesn't force its will on businesses like they do in tyrannical communist and socialist countries like Canada.

Answer 6

It varies with each company - with mine, it's 10 days for new employees which is pro-rated depending on what time of the year you were hired. And that is in effect 90 days after your date of hire. Year 3 they bump you up to 3 weeks; year 12 it's 4 weeks. This excludes national holidays, and personal/sick days

Answer 7

Well, when I reached Vice President at the Bank I worked for, I got 5 weeks a year. I had worked for them about 3 years before becoming VP.
I don't know what Government jobs have in place in the US...

Answer 8

I'm not aware of an official policy, but many companies have plans like that. Some of the more successful high-tech firms have had six-week 'sabaticals,' as well, on top of vacations - though the one I work for ended that practice before I came on board.

Answer 9

It differs by company. At my company you get 2 weeks until your 7th year of employment, then 3 weeks until your 15th year of employment. I don't know if they ever give out more than 4 weeks. The U.S. is far behind other countries in terms of vacation time.

Answer 10

In the United States (North Carolina) it is June 5-August 6, or around 2 and a half months.