Work life balance in the USA

I've long considered wanting to move to the US at some point in my life. I recognise it has some serious flaws, but my main gripe about the country is with the lack of annual leave the US (and Canada) both have. Am I right in saying the US has NO guaranteed paid leave whatsoever and it has be negotiated with an employer before hand? I also read that approximately 25% of Americans don't get ANY paid leave whatsoever? I think the average American only gets just 10 days off a year? In Canada its not much better either with 2 weeks only (and wages are also lower than the US).

AUS/NZ appear to have a similar work-life balance to that of the UK by contrast. A minimum of 4-5 weeks plus an extra 10-13 paid days for public holidays which is a pretty good deal, so I'm open to moving there also. But the lack of paid work leave is a bit of a drag about North America. I'd be ok with 3 weeks but 10 days or less would depress me.
depending on what you do you end up with a lot more for your money. if you want money above everything else, the US is for you. Taxes are lower than UK (even in NY/NJ). The healthcare (if you have insurance) is way better. The food is more expensive and non domestic beer is too.

I much prefer it to the UK but each to their own.
 


Worked in Northern California for 9 years, 2 different jobs. Had 17 days in the first job and 26 in the second though I gave up salary for the latter. I liked where I lived but not San Francisco itself and despised the workplace environments. I’m not sure I’d have come back to the UK but my missus wanted to try living here once her parents retired to Japan. Going to move there ourselves at some point.
 
Would love to see a Shiras đź‘Ť
Jesus. He’s twice the size of those cars.
depending on what you do you end up with a lot more for your money. if you want money above everything else, the US is for you. Taxes are lower than UK (even in NY/NJ). The healthcare (if you have insurance) is way better. The food is more expensive and non domestic beer is too.

I much prefer it to the UK but each to their own.
In some ways the healthcare is way better. In other ways it’s way worse. For instance if you have a previous condition, you’re fucked. They might just decide that they don’t want to cover you for some reason. Or if you have a car accident that’s not your fault, they won’t cover you and you have to sue the other fella to cover your costs.

See Michael Moore’s Sicko for more info.
 
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I ve travelled extensively in the USA. I love the place.Not comfortable with their “ I pay you so I own you “attitude and they can’t differentiate between hard and soft socialism.

I go off the beaten track and many Brits would be astounded at some of the poverty- my shed is in better shape than some of the shacks they call home bless em. But yet there’s a flag flying in their garden.

In the roughest suburbs the housing is far worse than our worse.... and extremely dangerous. South Central LA and Camden NJ were interesting.

Yet I’m magically drawn to the place , good and bad , it’s fascinating. The optimism of the people is , or was amazing. And things get done - they don’t piss about .
 
Big bad NYC.

It's funny I've spent the year in lockdown so I've barely had chance to f***ing explore haha. I think it's difficult, and there's a little bit of me admiring the green grass across the road. The UK is blessed to have good healthcare, no guns, but I also know there's fuck all opportunities for me in the NE. New York has them opportunities, but as I've said it also has guns, a lack of safety and no work life balance. I can see why people stay here for life because the quality of living when you do go out (shows, etc) is impressive, big city living is great if you have money.
That was never my experience. I never saw or heard anything of guns when I lived in NYC (whereas other cities I felt wary of people being armed). Handguns are very illegal in New York. I thought it was safer than living in the UK day to day. My boss was a lairy Scottish arsehole, but no-one ever swung for him (he'd have got chinned on every night out in Sunderland, the way he went on).

For work life balance I reckon my clients averaged 2 weeks holiday on average. I had 32 days a year, so a bit of an outlier (on the flip side I had to have a minimum 55 chargeable hours a week in January and February).

I'm not sure it was any cheaper either. Eating out was cheaper, but groceries more expensive and drinking comparable to London prices. I reckon the effective tax rate I paid was higher in the US than I pay in the UK too (if you're paying NYC City tax - I'd have probably saved a bit of I lived in New Jersey).

Health insurance was the killer. It was a fortune out of every pay packet and the co-pay was still high, for a standard of doctor that was no better than the NHS.

I moved back because my Mrs (no) was up the stick and I didn't want to suffer the trifecta of labour ward fees, minimal maternity pay and American children.
 
That was never my experience. I never saw or heard anything of guns when I lived in NYC (whereas other cities I felt wary of people being armed). Handguns are very illegal in New York. I thought it was safer than living in the UK day to day. My boss was a lairy Scottish arsehole, but no-one ever swung for him (he'd have got chinned on every night out in Sunderland, the way he went on).

For work life balance I reckon my clients averaged 2 weeks holiday on average. I had 32 days a year, so a bit of an outlier (on the flip side I had to have a minimum 55 chargeable hours a week in January and February).

I'm not sure it was any cheaper either. Eating out was cheaper, but groceries more expensive and drinking comparable to London prices. I reckon the effective tax rate I paid was higher in the US than I pay in the UK too (if you're paying NYC City tax - I'd have probably saved a bit of I lived in New Jersey).

Health insurance was the killer. It was a fortune out of every pay packet and the co-pay was still high, for a standard of doctor that was no better than the NHS.

I moved back because my Mrs (no) was up the stick and I didn't want to suffer the trifecta of labour ward fees, minimal maternity pay and American children.

Out of interest what’s the average healthcare cost for equivalent NHS cover per year?
 
Jesus. He’s twice the size of those cars.

In some ways the healthcare is way better. In other ways it’s way worse. For instance if you have a previous condition, you’re fucked. They might just decide that they don’t want to cover you for some reason. Or if you have a car accident that’s not your fault, they won’t cover you and you have to sue the other fella to cover your costs.

See Michael Moore’s Sicko for more info.
your car insurance normally covers you for that. then you sue the other guy anyway.

pre existing condition applies tho. health records matter waaay more. thats why sometimes its best to go just out of pocket.
 
Out of interest what’s the average healthcare cost for equivalent NHS cover per year?
Dunno, I've never paid anything beyond ÂŁ10 for a prescription to use the NHS.

But I have read (in several different places, though maybe all from the same source) that the US pays more per head of population to cover poor people and old people for free than we pay per head to cover everyone.

If you are suggesting I'm paying the same for NHS cover but through tax rather than insurance, that is not the case. I paid a higher average rate of tax in the US.
 
Out of interest what’s the average healthcare cost for equivalent NHS cover per year?
there isn't an equivalent because of how the networks work.
Dunno, I've never paid anything beyond ÂŁ10 for a prescription to use the NHS.

But I have read (in several different places, though maybe all from the same source) that the US pays more per head of population to cover poor people and old people for free than we pay per head to cover everyone.

If you are suggesting I'm paying the same for NHS cover but through tax rather than insurance, that is not the case. I paid a higher average rate of tax in the US.
interesting. were you a low earner? our insurance and tax bands makes for far more take home than in the UK.
 
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Dunno, I've never paid anything beyond ÂŁ10 for a prescription to use the NHS.

But I have read (in several different places, though maybe all from the same source) that the US pays more per head of population to cover poor people and old people for free than we pay per head to cover everyone.

If you are suggesting I'm paying the same for NHS cover but through tax rather than insurance, that is not the case. I paid a higher average rate of tax in the US.
The US pays more per capital for healthcare than any other country.


 
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interesting. were you a low earner? our insurance and tax bands makes for far more take home than in the UK.
No, although everything's relative, especially in Manhattan...

But my effective tax rate in the last year I was there was 37% - 21% federal, 7% social security, 6% state, 3% City. My effective tax rate (income tax and NI) in the UK for the same year and same salary would have been a few % lower.
 
did the driver not have accident liability? one thing i dislike is the litigiousness of US society. and on the topic of accidents, us drivers and their road system is a complete disaster.
It wasn’t his fault plus we were whisked off to hospital so I didn’t even know who he was. Exchanging details while I’m strapped to a stretcher isn’t the first thing you think of. It was a f***ing nightmare. Thankfully as an expat my work paid all my bills, but if not I’d have been a few grand short with the potential of months of physio. I came home a year later anyway.
 
I agree. I did it on an expat package for four years (so full healthcare, UK holidays and rent paid) and it was f***ing mint. But I wouldn’t raise my kids there.

Saying that we have friends who live in a ski resort in Colorado. He works for a UK company on US terms, but gets to start early, go skiing or biking at lunchtime and then back on calls in the PM. They have a massive house and moose and bears in their garden.

On the flip side, their five year old has to regularly practise silently hiding under the table at school in case someone comes in with an AK47.

Nailed it: lol:
That was never my experience. I never saw or heard anything of guns when I lived in NYC (whereas other cities I felt wary of people being armed). Handguns are very illegal in New York. I thought it was safer than living in the UK day to day. My boss was a lairy Scottish arsehole, but no-one ever swung for him (he'd have got chinned on every night out in Sunderland, the way he went on).

For work life balance I reckon my clients averaged 2 weeks holiday on average. I had 32 days a year, so a bit of an outlier (on the flip side I had to have a minimum 55 chargeable hours a week in January and February).

I'm not sure it was any cheaper either. Eating out was cheaper, but groceries more expensive and drinking comparable to London prices. I reckon the effective tax rate I paid was higher in the US than I pay in the UK too (if you're paying NYC City tax - I'd have probably saved a bit of I lived in New Jersey).

Health insurance was the killer. It was a fortune out of every pay packet and the co-pay was still high, for a standard of doctor that was no better than the NHS.

I moved back because my Mrs (no) was up the stick and I didn't want to suffer the trifecta of labour ward fees, minimal maternity pay and American children.
How long ago were you here mate? My missus is born and raised New Yorker like, so I take a lead from her.

It's not a warzone, you're right, but just of late there's been a rise in robberies and what have you. When I say work life balance I compare it to my brother. He works a standard office job and he's home by 6. My missus isn't back until 8 and that's not accounting for the hour drive or the fact she's in the office by 8.
 
Nailed it: lol:

How long ago were you here mate? My missus is born and raised New Yorker like, so I take a lead from her.

It's not a warzone, you're right, but just of late there's been a rise in robberies and what have you. When I say work life balance I compare it to my brother. He works a standard office job and he's home by 6. My missus isn't back until 8 and that's not accounting for the hour drive or the fact she's in the office by 8.
I came back 12 years ago,and I was there for 3 years.

Definitely noticed the difference after Di Blasio got elected though. Traffic jams all over and he seemed to suspend the vagrancy laws - there was an angry homeless nutcase on every street corner when I was there a couple of years back.
 

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