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The United States is the world's only advanced economy that does not guarantee its workers paid time off. Spain sits on the opposite end of the spectrum, guaranteeing over 35 days of vacation for workers. This is illustrated in the chart below. Most advanced countries are much closer to Spain than they are the US, where 1 in 4 workers gets absolutely no paid vacation or holidays. In the US, paid vacation is just another working benefit for those who are already rich to enjoy. On the other side, the poor continue to get poorer as they are overworked and lose pay for taking needed time-off.
Paid leave is also never mandated by the US federal government for sick employees. Workers whos employers do not offer this benefit lose money due to getting sick, or must come into work anyways and become a public health threat. Some workers who fail to come to work when scheduled are fired, even if they are sick. Providing a doctor's note can help, but often times these same workers don't have health insurance or the appopriate income level to see a doctor for non-threatening illnesses. We are currently seeing the consequences of this as some who are staying home due to COVID-19 concerns, quarantines, and isolations are being fired.
If you're not convinced yet, here is a discussion about the burnout that US workers feel when they are not allowed time off. The clip also offers suggestions on the system that could be put in to afford Americans more rest.
One common criticism of the push for more paid vacation and holidays is that it would be very costly to the economy. Labor costs would be higher due to compensating for lost productivity. But is this really true? In practice, the results could very well be drastically different that this theory. Paid time off would decrease fatigue and burnout and lead to an increase in productivity during the days worked. Workers would be happier at their job, which could lead to less job turnover, another efficiency indicator. Perhaps the most significant indicator that paid vacation time would not ruin our economy is the fact that every other industrialized country federally mandates it. At the end of the day, we should be thinking about how to treat human beings first, and then figure the economy out later.
Mandating paid vacation time would ensure that workers stay happy, healthy, and productive, and would have the potential to make progress in closing the class divides rather than expanding them.
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