The easiest way to explain this is to point to the fact that Sweden for a large part of it´s modern history (1936-1976, 1982-1991 and 1994-2006) has been ruled by the Social Democratic Party of Sweden.
One of the main pillars of the party´s ideology has been "the welfare of the people" in all aspects of life. They are thus rightfully considered the main designers of what once was "The Welfare State" where the citizens were always under the benevolent protection of the state, from the cradle to the grave.
This welfare state began crumbling in the 1990´s and is since then slowly being dismantled, piece by piece, to expose the surprised Swedes to the market forces.
However one of the benefits created that has not yet been removed is the Holidays Act. According to this law all employees are entitled to a holiday whether employed by the hour or the CEO of a company. (No employed person is excluded, even the Swedish Prime Minister takes a vacation.) Everyone who is employed is entitled to a minimum of five weeks vacation, four of these weeks they are entitled to receive continuously during the period June-August.
During a period of about six weeks (July - mid August) Sweden comes close to a complete standstill. Only the most essential services are maintained and the workforce of any given company is reduced to half - or less - it´s usual size, some companies even choose to shut down completely for a month.
I think one of the main reasons we Swedes accept these conditions is that we ourselves wouldn't want to lose our summer vacation.
Summer is important to us Swedes, just saying!
This is civilized living. People in the United States get perhaps 2 weeks off a year plus public holidays (about 10 days total). Some get a bit more, many get no time off without pay. Not only that, many American companies look down on vacation time and actually expect "up and comers" such as new associates in law firms looking for promotions to take no time off at all. Although many Americans now are without full time work (unemployment and underemployment together account for about 17 - 20% of the workforce) and would welcome 7 day a week work, this goes to show you that the American attitude towards work fails miserably compared to what exists in Sweden and other countries in Europe.
ReplyDeleteTo the subject I´d like to add some lines on our Swedish laws about parental rights to get payed leave with our newborn children.
ReplyDeleteI am now passed the age when that was regarding me personally so I don´t know the exact numbers. But I looked it up:
Both mother and father can take leave during the childs first 18 months, they can share the time between them but basically 60 days is reserved for each parent.
They get paid from social security during this time. Or please Bock, what is Försäkringskassan in English? : ))
There are more benefits to it, this is just a small taste of how what our taxes pay. They are regarded as high by many persons here and abroad but I would never exchange them for being a lone ranger out there in the wilderness.
Well Kandi, I think the best translation of Försäkringskassan would be "The Swedish Social Insurance Agency"
ReplyDeleteSocial insurance is an important part of the Swedish social security system. The Swedish social insurance covers everyone that lives or works in Sweden. It provides financial protection for families and children, for persons with a disability and in connection with illness, work injury and old age. Through the Swedish membership of the EU, you may also be eligible for social insurance benefits in other EU member states.
Read more about it here (in English) Försäkringskassan in English
Forgot: Parents of the same sex who are in registered partnership and have adopted have the same rights in these matters as parents of different sex.
ReplyDeleteUnmarried or unregistrated parents do not have the same rights as married and registred partnership. It´s not okay to force people to get married or registrated. Some poeple dont belive in marriage and wants to live in a conscience marriage.
ReplyDelete