After working hard all through the normal days, there is nothing as sweet as taking a few days off your busy work schedule, particularly in a country like the U.S. It has turned out that the majority of industrialized world get more days off time than the USA. According to a study done by Mercer, a renowned human resources consulting firm, citizens of different countries get different vacation time or days per year. This study looked at both the floating time off for individuals with a minimum of approximately ten years of service within given fields for which there are mandatory minimum vacation days off according to the set labor laws and the national holidays.
Here are the top ten countries around the world with most days off. A country like the U.S. is not on the list, not even close, meaning it is among some of the countries with the minimum number of days off per working year!
1. South Korea: 34 full paid time off days
With 34 days of fully paid time off, South Korea is definitely one of the countries around the globe with the highest number of fully paid vacation time. However, South Koreans work really hard for their time off. In simple terms, the country has one of the highest average overtime hours and workweeks in the world. In a summary, South Koreans have 19 days of vacation time plus 15 public holiday days making a total of 34 fully paid days per year.
2. Denmark: 34 full paid time off days
In addition to Denmark appearing to have an excellent egalitarian working environment, its workers have good quantity of vacation time. According a knowledgeable expert on world’s human resources, if you work in Denmark, then the possibilities of exerting influence on your employer and even co-determining the contents of the work are pretty high. The tradition in Denmark is to delegate responsibilities and then permitting the workers to participate in all decision making. Apart from this, the employers invest in the workers education so as to further develop their competence. The employees are further allowed a total paid time off of 34 days per year. In a summary, all workers get 25 fully paid vacation days plus 9 public holiday time off making a total of 34 fully paid time off days.
3. Cyprus: 35 full paid time off days
If you work in Cyprus, then you are one of the luckiest employees around the globe when t comes to the number of days you are allowed off duty. Workers here get a total of 35 days fully paid time off. With 20 days of fully paid vacation time and 15 days of public holidays, the Cypriots enjoy a lot of free time at any given year. However, though they get a lot of free paid time off, their working day get started at 8.00 am to 5.30 pm with around one and a half hours of lunch time break.
4. Luxembourg: 35 full paid time off days
This is another country where workers enjoy a lot of free paid days during the year. Apart from the many paid vacation days, employees in Luxembourg enjoy a lot of other additional benefits such as a 13th month bonus per year. Some employers even add a 14th month bonus pay payable at every end of the year. Some industries, especially those that operate continuous processing lines and few in the tourism industries allow their workers to work on Sunday. However, working on a Sunday is entirely voluntary and is always paid at double rates above the standard salary rates. The total allowable vacation days in Luxembourg are 25 days and 10 public holiday time off, making a total of 35 fully paid vacation days.
5. Spain: 36 days of fully paid holidays
Spaniards love their long weekends and who doesn’t? And they love to go beyond the set number of vacation days in other countries. And whether the holidays fall midweek or during the weekend, you will find the Spaniards enjoying the day off at a place of choice. However, it is good to note that holidays in Spain are taken on the exact day they fall. In simple terms, a holiday is not moved from Sunday to Monday to create a three day weekend as is normally done in some other countries around the world. All the same, there are 22 vacation and 14 public holiday days making a total of 36 fully paid time off days in Spain.
6. Greece: 37 full paid time off day
Workers in Greece get 25 vacation and 12 public holiday fully paid time off days. This means that workers here get plenty of vacation time to enjoy their country’s beauty. However, there are many labor issues in Greece, for instance, you may work for many hours and end up being paid nothing. To counter this, it is best to ask the employer to pay you on a weekly or daily basis. This way, you won’t end up losing a whole month’s pay.
7. Austria: 38 days full paid off time
Workers here get 25 vacation and 13 public holiday time off days making a total of 38 total paid time off days. Further to the many off duty days, employees here enjoy very generous and guaranteed bonuses in addition to their normal salaries. In addition to the normal vacation pay, workers here get a 13th month salary and a 14th month Christmas salary, each pay amounting to a full months salary. Best of all, these bonuses are subject to lower taxations.
8. France: 40 days off time fully paid
Here, workers enjoy a 40 days fully paid time off duty. This is a dream come true to any foreign worker who finds employment in France. Yes, imagine having two months of full paid vacation time every year! Apart from the many days of fully paid vacation time, the French have excellent recourse option if they think they have been fired unjustly. For example, if you have worked for more two years in a company that has more than 11 workers, if you are unfairly dismissed by your employer, then a judge may either force the company to re-employ you with full benefits or ordered to pay at least six months salary in compensation.
9. Russia: 40 full paid time off days
In Russia, employees get 28 vacation and 12 public holiday days making a total of 40 full paid time off days. However, as Russia is only a few years free of communism, everyone here is still finding the way through the free market way of doing things. This means that sometimes salaries get delayed for durations of up to 6-7 weeks. The employers are trying very hard to catch up with their western world counterparts and therefore become more reliable in the way they do things.
10. Brazil: 41 days full paid time off
There is no better country around the world to get a two month fully paid vacation time than Brazil. The government even forces people to take at least a full month off duty every year. The total allowable full paid off duty time in Brazil is 41 days per year.
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