To think 2 weeks is an unusually long summer holiday?

[PrettyLittleCryer]

How long do you take off on holiday if you go away over summer - particularly if you work full time?

I think half a month is a long time to expect to just walk out of a job and them to carry on without you.

But is that what most people take?

Yep we had too!

In France people often take 3 or 4 in row.
More to life the working!

Americans don't take 2 weeks off at a time because they have so few holiday days so maybe for that reason your company's just not used to it.
A company should always be able to function without a particular staff member as someone can be ill at any time. Holidays should be even easier to deal with because they can be arranged at quiet times or when a colleague can cover.
An organisation that falls to pieces when certain people are away is badly run and/or under-staffed.

What happens if you’re sick? Who does your work then?

Not being goady, genuinely curious! X

I work for US companies, so quite used to their 'work ethic'. The workforce is much leaner so less fat or cover to begin with. US colleagues will log on and go on video calls whilst on holiday. My UK colleague went on maternity leave for 15 months (it is the full length if you add on accrued leave + stored up leave). Because maternity leave is never quite so long in the US, there is no concept of a maternity cover. Guess I ended up doing 2 person's work for 15 months and my colleague never came back anyway.

My US manager never understood.

Come to think of it, it is relatively rare for my US colleagues to go away for 2 weeks at a shot.

It’s standard.

However I think it’s a bit less standard than it was in the 80s, because cheap flights and a general cultural shift towards mini breaks.

I think a two break is pretty essential to really recharge though, and lots of work places go slow over August anyway.

Are you American?😁

Exactly! Often they only have 2 or 3 weeks total leave each year. Nobody wants to take it all at once and then have no time off for the rest of the year.

I used to work for a big Swedish multinational. The whole of HQ would more or less close for 4 weeks in the summer while they all went off to their holiday homes on remote archipelago islands. There was often no phone signal or internet access so they were completely out of contact. There were never any disasters, the company was fine and it continues to be very successful.

Ooh that’s interesting, I have never heard of that.

In the US I took 8 weeks maternity leave - 6 weeks paid and a further 2 weeks unpaid. The company managed no to fall apart and nobody had to cover for me!

I'm in NZ, and while two weeks is pretty standard here, people sometimes take four - six or even more weeks off to go overseas for a holiday. Their workplaces seem to manage.

Standard in the financial services sector after Nick Leeson

OP - if you can, move on from working for a us company to a European one. Every US company I've worked for really don't have a culture of caring for their staff. Stuff like this- not having systems in place of staff working in teams so they can easily cover each others work load is based on the idea you won't take long stretches of time off work, that you'll be contactable on leave and you won't take time off sick.

Its noticeable for all the guff they will spout about caring for staff that they've created a culture that makes it hard to take your time off you are entitled to, and making sure you can't switch off properly.

Completely normal, when I was a kid we normally went away for 3 weeks in the summer and 4 weeks if it was somewhere special like USA.

2 weeks all in one go is mandatory for DH (financial services).

Sadly in my sector, US firms pay the best. Depends on what you want out of the job.

2 to 3 and half weeks depending on type of holiday. I get cover for work and my husband delegate's his work

Its not standard in my experience. I work for a US company in their European HQs, 3 to 4 weeks paid time off is standard along with 4 weeks paid sabbatical every 5 years and this is same for all US corporations with European offices. Example PayPal, Meta, Google etc.

arrgh meant Is standard

@PrettyLittleCryer my dad runs a business, and the first week in August is the week when it's pretty much accepted that everyone will be on holiday. That was when we went on holiday when I was a child. I am self employed so get no weeks at all! It's only people who are employed by other people who think it's reasonable to take --the piss- two or more weeks off at a time.

PP have asked who does the work if you're sick. If you're self employed, the answer is that you would have to be dead not to work.

I work in financial services and we must take 2 consecutive weeks leave every 12 months as a fraud prevention method.

People usually take 4 weeks at once in my country, or if they split it up during the summer season at least two weeks have to be together (law, to allow for proper recovery from work stress), plus a week in the winter. And depending on your collective agreement, you might get a holiday bonus as well as your holiday pay.

I'm currently on a 6 week summer holiday, making up for the last few years.

I'm visiting my family overseas and taking 2 weeks leave, 2 weeks working from that country. Very grateful my employer agreed to this arrangement.

Perfectly normal, a lot of workplaces insist on it.

Yes, absolutely. If someone hasn't taken two weeks in one go it can be a red flag.

I'm seeing the trend for 3 or 4 week holidays in the summer now. Or 2 lots of 2 weeks during the holidays. I think we're becoming a bit more like the Nordics.