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Payday or Holiday?

From Fast Company Now -

A new Salary.com online survey found that an increasing number of employees would forego cash for extra time in the sun. If given the choice between a $5,000 raise and the equivalent in time off, 39 percent of online survey respondents chose leisure time, up from just 33 percent three years ago.

This is a trend, and employers should be ready for increasing requests for more time off from their workforce in the years ahead.  Europeans routinely receive 5 to 6 weeks of vacation their first year with an employer and Australians generally receive six weeks as a starter.  In the US new employees generally receive on 1 to 2 weeks in year one and must work at least five years to get three weeks.

This gap will narrow as the economy continues to become more global.  And the Aussies and Europeans will not be reducing their standards to meet ours.  Be ready for this one.  Rewarding people with time off may become more important than financial bonuses and monetary benefits.  It's part of the cultural shift.

The Scandal of American Vacation Time <== from MSNBC (2002)

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