HOLIDAY ENTITLEMENT
Survey of employee holiday entitlements around the world
Workers in Western European countries, on average, have access to the greatest amount of statutory paid holiday in the world, according to research by Mercer. In contrast, employees in Asia Pacific have the lowest levels of statutory paid holiday.
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The data comes from Mercer’s Worldwide Benefit and Employment Guidelines which provides an overview of employee regulation and employment practices across 62 different countries. The report is used by multi-nationals to define their employee benefit policies across the countries in which they operate. Statutory holiday entitlement is the amount of time off work that an employer must provide to their employees by law.
Key findings
Austrian employees have the potential for most holiday time, with 25 days' statutory holiday entitlement and 13 days' public holidays and those in Malta, with 24 days' statutory holiday entitlement and 14 days' public holiday. In both countries employees have the potential for 38 days' holiday a year.
Workers in the USA have the least generous with no statutory holiday entitlement.
The Philippines and Canada have the lowest possible entitlements with 20 and 19 days, respectively.
Employees in Columbia have the greatest number of public holidays (18 days)
Those in Mexico have the least number of public holidays (7 days).
Health warnings
Actual holiday provisions in individual countries often depend on company contracts and the number and treatment of public holidays. In the UK, for example, employees are entitled to 28 days’ holiday. With the UK also holding eight public holidays each year, this suggests that employees here could be on holiday for 36 days, or 10%, of each year. This would be one of the highest entitlements of all 62 countries.
The reality is that companies are allowed to include the eight public holidays as part of the 28-day entitlement. So UK employees actually have fewer days’ holidays than their peers in the rest of Europe where, in general, the practice is for European employees to take public holidays in addition to their statutory entitlement.
Click here to view Mercer’s table setting out holiday entitlements around the world.
A final word
“Despite continued economic turmoil, interest in the issue of work-life balance continues to grow. From the employee’s and company’s perspective, health creates wealth. Companies recognise that a healthy, happy workforce is a productive one and this feeds directly into the bottom line. How companies interpret holiday regulations provision is a major factor. With pay rises muted and often below the rate of inflation, companies are searching for other ways to motivate their staff. Flexible working and a good employee work-life balance helps improve employee engagement when the usual financial tools are unavailable.” - Wolfgang Seidl, Head of Mercer’s Healthcare Consulting business.
Want to know more?
Title: Worldwide Benefit and Employment Guidelines 2011, Mercer.
Availability: Read the press release online at http://uk.mercer.com/press-releases/holiday-entitlements-around-the-world. To purchase the report go to www.imercer.com/products/2011/wbeg.aspx.
Mercer is a “global leader in human resource consulting and related services”. It works with clients to “solve their most complex human capital issues by designing and helping manage health, retirement and other benefits”. Mercer’s 20,000 employees are based in more than 40 countries. To find out more visit http://uk.mercer.com.