Vacation Time...How much do you have?

INTERESTING TOPIC
I am a young 71 ( retired 10 years )
Wife not so healthy 68 retired many years due too medical
Always owing a boat , cruisers, fishing . sail
I am a river rat . Cant be without a boat & water life.
Wife never liked my boats , no comfortable bathroom , A/C, comforts of home .

I am on this forum getting info on trawlers and this post got my interest

I don't want too give up my home, garage, tools , old truck , corvette and come too terms with that . Ocean is 75 miles each way. I sleep aboard returning home in a day or two
I own a 30 ft twin engine power cruiser . My water condo
Purchased cause wife fell in love with cabin . Stupid way too buy a boat but figured this type of yacht will get me back into a larger boat then SELL .
Home a few days I am climbing walls needing too get back too ocean
Have this desire too travel via water , but present boat burns too much fuel , limited on space , not designed for the long voyage
INTERESTING SIDE NOTE
I am in FLA, at gas dock , talking with a young man on his 40 ft sail boat
Possibly 35 years of age,
Just returning from a long voyage traveling back home too Carolinas
WOW how cool , doing that voyage . Wish I had the guts too do that

SAIL OR TRAWLER
Wife joins me to do something together but will never have the adventure or comfort level or love of the ocean as I do
I have spoken with many men that had the same desire as me , NOW DOING IT THEMSELVES .
WIFES say there going back too land .

RETIRMENT offers time too do things , does not mean you have too do it together

BandB said:

Just for information, here are the minimums by law by country for some of the countries represented here.

Listed are paid vacation plus paid holidays and total based on 5 day weeks so divide by 5 to get weeks.

Australia 20+10=30
France 25+11=36
Germany 20+9=29
Italy 20+12=32
New Zealand 20+11=31
UK 20+8=28
US 0+0=0

Canada varies by province and can be 10 to 20 + 6 to 10 so total 16 to 30

Obviously the loser is the US
The winner is Iran at 26+27=53

Click to expand...

Sweden is not on the list at 34 days (25+9). Although it has changed slightly with employees using some vacation during other times of the year, traditionally everyone was on vacation for the month of July. Employers are also, by law, required to alert employees when they are about to max out vacation and lose time. My company is headquartered in Sweden, formerly family owned and now traded on the Stockholm Exchange. Every now and then a brave (naive) soul will question a board member on the the contradiction in thinking and policy between there and here. A chill comes over the group. This despite the huge amount of evidence on the increased productiveness and employee well being, loyalty, etc. Just not done over here.

I'm 54 years old and live 4 hours away from the boat. I get 8 weeks, but I marked 6 weeks on the poll. That's because the eight weeks is total time off, including sick time, time to go to the doctor, wait for someone to deliver a package, Etc. Anytime that you are away from the office you need to take PTO. Also, I'm so busy at work that it is rare that I can take all of the time that I'm allotted.

That said, I always make sure that I get at least one solid week on the boat and as many 3 or 4 day weekends as possible. I live in Minnesota so my boating season is much constrained compared to other locations. You have to go when you can.

Retired at 59 after building a business for 32 years. Signed the contract to build the boat five weeks later. Hope to get 60-90 days out next year. Got lucky with moorage. A marina 3.1 miles from the house remodeled and expanded. We got a choice location and didn't even have to pay one month early.

Having lived and worked in Australia, and enjoying my travel and time off, our company had a pretty generous policy, at least for a small, American, company. I forget exactly but something like:

1-2 years: 2 weeks
3-8 years: 3 weeks
9-20 years: 4 weeks
20+ years: 6 weeks

We had challenges with the 4+ weeks group taking their time off. I'd say maybe 60% would build more than the allowable backlog (so we had to pay the vacation off).

A few trends in the US today.

Things are slowly evolving with a few companies following brave new paths. There's a trend toward lumping time off all under PTO or Personal Time Off and not differentiating holidays or personal from vacation. Some companies still maintain separate sick days while others even lump them in. Most companies do not differentiate sick from personal days now. The trend is also toward being more understanding that sometimes people just need a day off, whether you call that sick or not. It might even be referred to as a mental health day.

In Silicone Valley and with some other businesses, there's a new movement called unlimited vacation days or unlimited time off. I don't really understand how in practice that works without some managers holding taking too much time off against some employees.

Also, a few companies including some law firms I'm aware of offering and encouraging time off for volunteer work.

And a few companies becoming more generous with Sabbaticals after a certain number of years, some paid, some unpaid.

Reminder that 23% of US employees get no paid vacation or holidays.

Interestingly, employers in Idaho, South Dakota and Maryland give the most vacation time at 22, 21 and 18 days. Alaska, Kentucky and Mississippi average the least at 8, 9 and 9.

A few companies leading the way in more time off:

IKEA-Not surprising a Swedish Company would. 3 weeks at start, 5 weeks after 5 years, 7 weeks after 10 years. Also, vacation for part time employees as you'd just get it proportional to your normal hours worked.

GOOGLE-3 weeks after a year, 4 weeks after 3 years and 5 weeks after 5 years.

MONSANTO-4 weeks in second year plus a week between Christmas and New Year's.

INTEL-3 to 4 weeks vacation but 4 weeks of paid sabbatical every 4 years or 8 weeks every 7 years.

One other trend. When I was young we admired the person who worked even though they were very sick, so determined, so committed. Now, we've come to the realization that coming to work with contagious conditions is unhealthy for the employee and all others so now most employers are discouraging it.

The trend is also toward being more understanding that sometimes people just need a day off, whether you call that sick or not. It might even be referred to as a mental health day

Click to expand...

I have called in "sea sick" on more than one occasion.....of course I would shut down the engine and turn off the VHF before I made the call.

jleonard said:

I have called in "sea sick" on more than one occasion.....of course I would shut down the engine and turn off the VHF before I made the call.

Click to expand...

We encourage employees to call in honestly. Don't want it all the time, but we've had "I went to my sister's 21st birthday party and partied too late." That's fine unless you use the same one every week.

After 35 years, I get 26 days of vacation per year.

Next month I turn 59 years old. I could have retired 3 years ago, but since my wife and I like to eat three meals a day, I decided to wait a couple more years!

I'll probably retire in 3 more years (after I turn 62).

We, hopefully, go to settlement next week on selling our house that we built and have lived in for the past 25 years. We don't plan on buying our retirement home for at least another 5 years. We are currently leasing a home and thinking about buying our first powerboat in a year or so. (plan on keeping my small sailboat for another year so that I can better teach my adult daughter to sail.)

What is complicating our boat buying decision is that we are considering living in Barcelona, Spain, for a year after I retire. Thus, we are deliberating whether to buy a boat before I retire (and enjoy the Chesapeake Bay for a couple of years and then store it on the hard for a year) or wait until we return from Europe?

Jim

Greetings,
Mr. JLD. MY $.02. Wait until after you return from overseas. There will still be boats for sale, you won't have to store your "new" boat for a year (xtra $$) and you can spend that year looking at boats and giving sailing lessons. Perhaps even rent for a week or two.

JLD, we have a similar plan except that we'll do half a year there (winters) followed by summers living on the boat. That pattern should work for quite a few years and gets us home to see family etc. Plus we can chose a new place or the same to go back to. Sadly this is about 8 years away still ...

Retiring in six weeks...no boat yet, but soon. My first ten years of hourly employment provided me with six paid holidays, ( including the week between Christmas and New Years, and the first day of Deer Hunting Season), and 3 weeks per year of paid vacation. That company closed in 1982! For the last 32 years I have been employed as an IBEW Electrician. We used to have a vacation program that took a percentage each week out of of our hourly paycheck to go into a fund for vacations and holidays. This was essentially an employee funded program and worked well until the Trustees decided to to invest the funds, lost money, and the fund became insolvent. Now, we have no paid vacation, no Holiday, but, supposedly a decent wage to fund our own vacation/ Holidays! Liked the old system better!

Greetings,


All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy,
All play and no work makes Jack a mere toy.


First cited in 1659...

RT Firefly said:

Greetings,
Mr. JLD. MY $.02. Wait until after you return from overseas. There will still be boats for sale, you won't have to store your "new" boat for a year (xtra $$) and you can spend that year looking at boats and giving sailing lessons. Perhaps even rent for a week or two.

Click to expand...

Wifey B: Wait till you return. You may decide not to return. Never know. Sure is nice there. Only area of Europe I've seen much of but we visited as we have family friends there.

MurrayM said:

In my work context, having everybody eligable for at least 3 weeks holidays means we have an adequate supply of trained temporary workers who get enough work to stick around. They come in real handy when someone gets sick or injured, and slide seamlessly into jobs when people move or retire.

I also get 6 personal days a year, for things like taking care of a sick child when my wife is out of town, or taking my elderly father to an appointment when he was alive. I used one this week for day surgery, so I didn’t lose a days pay while being in the hospital.

The day surgery was ‘free’ as well, but I do pay about $22.00 a month into a Provincial government medical plan for our family.

Less stress = happier Life.

Click to expand...

I pay $1668 per month for our large deductible family health insurance here in the US. I’m healthy, 53 years old.

We really need a public option, or at least let people buy into Medicare early. It’s ridiculous.

Crusty Chief said:

Sometimes I think I work harder at retirement than I did running a successful business. This cruising thing 7-9 months a year is hard work!

Click to expand...

EXACTLY! I’m retired and now I don’t have any vacation time! I’ve never been so busy in my life!

Jim

JDCAVE said:

EXACTLY! I’m retired and now I don’t have any vacation time! I’ve never been so busy in my life!

Jim

Click to expand...

21 (ish) months and counting

cardude01 said:

I pay $1668 per month for our large deductible family health insurance here in the US. I’m healthy, 53 years old.

We really need a public option, or at least let people buy into Medicare early. It’s ridiculous.

Click to expand...

Jeez, my complete coverage, health, dental, mutilation, life etc from my job cost me around 3$/month for 2! 1668$ is more than my monthly home mortgage!

L

I’ve taken a week off the last 7 years. As I own the company, and we’re in digital marketing, everyone is working insane hours. I’m 63 and will close up shop in a year. Taking a vacation would end up being “work from a remote location”. That being said it quit being work many years ago, I enjoy it.

Boats are 90 miles away, from April to November we rarely miss a weekend. When I retire I plan to loop.

The employees who produce - and last - get all the vacation they want, which usually works out to 3 weeks. Some of them have to be forced to take a vacation.

SeaMoose said:

everyone is working insane hours. .

Click to expand...

I did that until my wife came into my life. Key word being "Insane." Yes, too late for you to change now, but the hours so many in the US work are insane. As to vacation and you talking about forcing it, we force it.

Lou_tribal said:

Jeez, my complete coverage, health, dental, mutilation, life etc from my job cost me around 3$/month for 2! 1668$ is more than my monthly home mortgage!

L

Click to expand...

Some numbers.

For all companies in the US, the average costs were $574 per month for single coverage and $1634 for family coverage. On single coverage, on average the employer paid $471 and the employee paid $103 per month. For family coverage, the employer paid on average $1160 per month and the employee paid $474 per month.

$15 per hour wage converts to $2600 per month. On a person making that, then single coverage is 22% of wages and family coverage is 63% of wages.

Yes, family coverage of health insurance, regardless of who pays it, is $1634 per month and median monthly mortgage in the US is $1030.

How does this come into play on vacations? Well, employers must look at all fringe benefits. If one grants two weeks vacation and 15 days for holidays and personal and sick days, then time off is 10.6% of wages for time worked. Adding two more weeks vacation would make it 15.6%.

Then other costs add in so granting more vacation can become very costly.

The high cost of insurance is cause, in part, by the absurd cost of medical care in this country.

The high price of prescription drugs is just one part of the problem. As Americans, we pay some of the highest prices in the world for our medicines. Also, the price we pay for the same medicine is all over the map. Even with insurance, medicine prices are sometimes crazy. For one of my daughters medicines, we tell the pharmacist to make sure they dispense the name brand drug, as it is cheaper than the generic version of the drug.

It has reached the point that some Americans, who have insurance, are afraid to go the hospital emergency room. I have heard stories of folks going to an emergency room that is covered under their insurance, receive bills for hundreds or even thousands of dollars because the ER physician does not take their insurance.

Jim

As we wonder off subject, the issue is the cost of medical care in this country, compared to the rest of the world, not the matter of who is paying that cost. Now, it impacts vacation time because it's in that same collective group of "fringe benefits." Every dollar spent on one benefit, reduces that available for others. In the US the cost of medical care is $10,224 per year. In Canada it's $4,826. Australia is $4,523. UK is $4,246.

That difference between the US and Canada of $5,398 per year for a $50,000 employee is the equivalent of over 5 weeks vacation.

IMHO the problem in the US is not the cost of healthcare, it is the lack of transparency in provider pricing. Much of this occurred because of well intentioned regulations that resulted in unintended consequences.

Imagine if you went to get your car fixed and they refused to give you a quote until after the car was fixed? That’s exactly how healthcare works!

Our vacation policy....now we actually don't separate vacation from holidays from sick and personal. We only grant Paid Time Off. Even sick time up to 3 days illness or injury counts against PTO. Greater than 3 days is "Disability" and requires those documents.

So
<2 years 2 weeks vacation, 5 weeks total PTO
>2 years 3 weeks vacation, 6 weeks total PTO
>5 years 4 weeks vacation, 7 weeks total PTO
>10 years 5 weeks vacation, 8 weeks total PTO
>15 years 6 weeks vacation, 9 weeks total PTO
>25 years 7 weeks vacation, 10 weeks total PTO

We keep PTO Service time separate from Actual Employee Service Time and give new hires some PTO service time.

This is through prior service. Prior service time is any directly related work experience plus 1/2 of any other work experience. Then, prior service years convert to PTO Service Time as follows:

2 Years Prior=1 Year PTO
4 Years Prior=2 Years PTO
6 Years Prior=3 Years PTO
8 Years Prior=4 Years PTO
10 Years Prior=5 Years PTO
13 Years Prior=6 Years PTO
16 Years Prior=7 Years PTO
19 Years Prior=8 Years PTO
22 Years Prior=9 Years PTO
25 Years Prior=10 Years PTO

If we hire someone through acquiring their employer, we give them full credit for service time there as PTO Service Time.

@BandB - In digital marketing the lure of making something that millions of people see drives people to happily work 80, 100 hours a week. Agencies hire young college grads and dangle the carrot of the Big Brand in their portfolio, pay them peanuts, and they work insane hours.

Last week a client suggested we have a creative review on Christmas Day because “Everybody’s schedule will be wide open that day”.

I’d write a book about this business when I retire but no one would believe it...

SeaMoose said:

@BandB - In digital marketing the lure of making something that millions of people see drives people to happily work 80, 100 hours a week. Agencies hire young college grads and dangle the carrot of the Big Brand in their portfolio, pay them peanuts, and they work insane hours.

Last week a client suggested we have a creative review on Christmas Day because “Everybody’s schedule will be wide open that day”.

I’d write a book about this business when I retire but no one would believe it...

Click to expand...

That's sad....sacrificing life for work, especially if they have family. In much of Europe that would be illegal and I don't mean just a civil violation, in some countries criminal.

We forbid any employees from exceeding 45 hours during a week without prior authorization from the board or it's Chairperson (my wife or me) and we only grant that in emergencies such as immediately after a hurricane. Only granted it once in 6 years.

I know it doesn't interest those of you convinced more is better, but if you did any form of a scientific study you'd find out how little extra you get for all those hours after the first few weeks.

Oh, and I do believe it. That's why I have the most incredible CIT. She left the world of Silicone Valley for the beaches of South Florida.

BandB said:

That's sad....sacrificing life for work...

Click to expand...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karōshi

We went for happy & humble, living small town life, surrounded by wilderness and empty anchorages

Vacation time

cardude01 said:

I pay $1668 per month for our large deductible family health insurance here in the US. I’m healthy, 53 years old.

We really need a public option, or at least let people buy into Medicare early. It’s ridiculous.

Click to expand...

Health care in the USA will get discussed again soon and I hope people will get on their computers to find out how it really works elsewhere and not just listen to the lies that were spread last time and I'm sure the next, I lived under the NHS in the U.K. For over 40yrs and we didn't have queues outside the hospitals waiting for treatment and the only person who decides what drugs or treatments you get is your doctor. Is it perfect outside the USA no of course not but it works for millions of Brits and Europeans at a lot less cost. And when it is said that health care for all would cost a great deal of money just think how much is payed to the drug and insurance industries, with no insurance to pay you might be happy to pay a bit more to Medicare as I would.

cardude01 said:

I pay $1668 per month for our large deductible family health insurance here in the US. I’m healthy, 53 years old.

We really need a public option, or at least let people buy into Medicare early. It’s ridiculous.

Click to expand...

First, I don't have the answer.

The part of what you wrote that annoys me is that apparently you can afford it, but you feel somebody else should be paying part of your cost in the the form of what they pay in taxes. It annoys me that I pay a lot in taxes and healthcare is expensive because a significant portion of people in the USA pay little or nothing for healthcare.

While it's often pointed out that the Canadian system is cheaper as a healthcare cost, one needs to look at how few in Canada get a free ride. Also, the other number that's quite telling is the taxes paid by the bottom 50% in that counrty (much higher than in the USA).

Ted

O C Diver said:

First, I don't have the answer.

The part of what you wrote that annoys me is that apparently you can afford it, but you feel somebody else should be paying part of your cost in the the form of what they pay in taxes. It annoys me that I pay a lot in taxes and healthcare is expensive because a significant portion of people in the USA pay little or nothing for healthcare.

While it's often pointed out that the Canadian system is cheaper as a healthcare cost, one needs to look at how few in Canada get a free ride. Also, the other number that's quite telling is the taxes paid by the bottom 50% in that counrty (much higher than in the USA).

Ted

Click to expand...

A public option would not necessarily cost most individuals more. First, it would help reign in the run-away cost of health care as services could be better negotiated. Second, while most Americans would see an increase in taxes, there would be a decrease in overall cost for lots of folks as they wouldn't find themselves paying $1600 a month for health insurance.

Personally, I have pretty good insurance now as decent rates, because as BandB mentions, many folks like myself with employer sponsored health insurance only pay about 1/3 of the cost. In addition, I am only a few years away from being eligible for Medicare. That said, I wouldn't mind paying a little bit more in taxes if it would help Americans that don't have access to basic health care get that access.

Jim