Read the passage below and check your comprehension by answering the following questions. Then “submit” your work.
If you are like most Americans, chances are that when you consider a job or career, you think not only about salary but also about benefits. Some of the most appealing companies to work for offer enticements like flexible work hours, in-house dining, child care, and even laundry services. These kinds of perks are relatively new and rare. But what about the most basic benefit of any job — time away from the job.
Two weeks of vacation time is standard in most U.S. companies — but it is not guaranteed by law. According to recent studies, the average private sector worker in the United States receives only about sixteen paid vacation days per year, down from twenty days in 2000 (Mohn, 2014). Almost one in four U.S. workers has no paid time off at all. Of course, most successful U.S. companies do offer vacation time to employees, even if they are not required by law to do so. But lower-wage workers typically receive fewer paid days off (seven on average) than higher-wage workers (an average of thirteen; Ray, Sanes, & Schmitt, 2013; Ray & Schmitt, 2007).
In other developed nations, things are quite different. Workers in the United Kingdom are guaranteed twenty-eight vacation days per year; in Austria and Portugal, workers get twenty-two vacation days in addition to thirteen paid holidays. Canadians enjoy a minimum of ten vacation days and nine holidays. In some of these nations, employers are even required to provide a little extra pay to help with vacation expenses (Ray, Sanes, & Schmitt, 2013; Ray & Schmitt, 2007).