To think that working for 40+ years straight with never more than two weeks off is a bit crap?

[NewYearNewName111]

Occurred to me whilst reading the SAHM thread that many (most?) men work for 40+ years without ever having more than a two week break from their work environment.

Obviously, being a SAHM mother can be extremely challenging and I'm not contesting this one bit. But it is a change of environment.

Most people I know only get 28 days leave, some of which they need to hold back for Easter, Xmas, etc, so holidays exceeding a fortnight are rare.

I've never really heard this discussed before but the more I think about it the more I'm irked by the prospect of another three decades in an office without even a month's escape!

I agree it's a choice.

I didn't work at all for 5 years after my children were born, and I haven't had an employer or worked full time for the past 21 years.

My youngest is 18 and at University- I work 20 hours a week at a time that is convenient to me.

I don’t think I know anyone who has done that. Most people spend time between jobs or take a longer holiday at some point.

This doesn't bother me - it's total time off that matters to me, not how big any single chunk is. Personally, I like to take mine as the odd day here and there. Wednesdays are great, as then it's like having two two-day weeks.

Be glad that you are not in the USA.....I went for an interview with British Airways when I lived there as a Customer Service Agent. The annual leave entitlement for new hires is 10 days per year and it takes years to get more days off. This is the norm for most American companies, although experienced professionals tend to be offered more vacation days.

Many Americans don’t even take their full entitlement....they are too afraid that they may not look ‘committed’ enough and will be the first to be let go if redundancies are being made - especially in “at will” States, where employees can be got rid of without any reason.

The USA has the least amount of maternity leave in the developed world.....pregnant mothers typically work right up until days before giving birth and return when the baby is six weeks old.

It's not just men who work 40+ years - I did too before I retired.

Last few years I've had a month off work to go travelling & some shorter breaks. There is a scheme where I can buy extra holiday. Secondly, working shifts allows for more time off. One company I worked for allowed 3 months off, but not many people took this opportunity, due to it being unpaid. I guess it depends what sort of work you do and if your manager and company can accommodate long holidays.

Some people I work with have family that live abroad in places that are far away. So not much point going long haul for only one or two weeks.

There are choices to be made too. Some people spend money on other things like cars, property, clothes, hobbies instead. . Some people like to travel and explore. As I said, some people travel to see their family. You also have to balance your income with your expenses. Some people may not earn enough to enable them to have a month off work even if it is paid holiday.

ShatnersWig oh I see, that is different.

In the industries I have worked in 25 days plus bank holidays is the norm. The longest holiday I have taken was 3 weeks at the end of a year long project when no holiday had been taken for the duration.

My father worked for just under 40 years and retired at 60. If he lives to the same age as his father then he would only have worked for less than a half if his life. My mum hardly worked at all but is still the one doing most of the housework.

Re holidays. I'm on NHS terms and conditions but don't actually work in the NHS.

Anyway, NHS workers will have the same holiday entitlement that I do, subject to length of service and any changes made since I joined the organisation I work for.

So you've got potentially hundreds of thousands/a million or more people with 30-35 days a year plus bank holidays.

Some companies will allow unpaid time off for an extended holiday. One friend of mine was given 6 months off fully paid for working 20 years for the same company ( think high street department store). I understand that such perks are rare though !

I think that may have been the case in the past, but most of my male peers have taken at least a month off for parental leave when they first have children.

It's also not uncommon to study/retrain at some point.

Also, sadly, very common for people to have extended sick leave at some point in their lives.

Like a pp, I work freelance so I can pick and choose. I don't think I could ever go back to being a full time employee again. I took a few months off not that long ago, while the people I was working with at the time were having to beg to get a specific week when they wanted it. I have also seen too many people slog away for all those years thinking they'll get to enjoy retirement and then dying within a couple of years of retiring or sometimes just before!

It's funny how it's always said that a good work ethic is a positive thing. Ok, it's not a bad thing as such, but life is about a lot more than work!

I know very few people who only get two weeks holiday a year. But otherwise I totally agree with you.

It is the reason I am now seriously thinking of bringing my working week down to 4 weeks and just sucking up the pay cut.

4 day weeks I meant.

yanbu it's a depressing thought

Yanbu but this applies to both men and women. Not all women have children and some who do aren’t out of the workplace for long. I think we’ve got our work/ life balance all wrong. Most people work full time lining the pockets of big businesses with only a couple of days off a week. Don’t see how it will change any time soon as people can’t afford to drop their hours and employers won’t reduce down to a four day working week without reducing pay too.

I think the best compromise is a well paid self employed job where you at least have some control and flexibility about when you work.

I've worked since 2003 with never more than 2 weeks off at any one time. It's been fine. Then last February I changed to term time only (I work in FE) and had the whole summer off, and it was LOVELY. Massive struggle going back in September though.

A lot of companies wont allow holidays of longer than two weeks without having senior management approval even if the employee has plenty of accrued holiday.

I am late 50s and worked full time until 6 months ago since I was 17. Used to get less holiday than people now get as well.

I probably should've said 'people who don't take maternity/paternity leave' as undoubtedly there are many women who choose not to have kids who are in the same situation - although traditionally in our society, for better or worse, it's predominantly the man who stays at work if a couple have children.

But yes a change can be as good as a rest, although in my industry the job is very similar in most companies - projects/bids lasting from 1-3 months with a crescendo at the end and then rinse and repeat.

I’m 57. Never had kids (not my choice). Worked full time for best part of 40 years, but have on a couple of occasions during my working life taken 4weeks annual leave and was signed off for three weeks with stress once. I’m taking voluntary early retirement in the summer.

NewYear In the past maternity leave was 3 months, and lots of mothers did go back to work. Most here are talking about their experience as younger mothers now.

I work part time for a big retailer. I get 13 days holiday, which as I only work 2 days a week equates to 6 1/2 weeks. Because of the way my shifts work, I don't work bank holidays but if I did I'd get paid extra plus time off in lieu. Considering it's shop work, I think it's very generous. We can take unpaid leave and holidays of longer than 2 weeks but obviously that has to be agreed by management. As a previous poster said, after 20 years you can apply for long leave (6 months full paid, probably the same company!)
I previously worked for the civil service and their holidays were quite generous. My husband only gets 20 days a year plus bank holiday and some of them has to be saved for Christmas.