Canada is a country used to ranking high on ‘best of’ lists.
With one glaring exception: minimum employee leave from work, a.k.a. paid vacation time.
Canadians are legally entitled to just two weeks (10 days) of paid vacation per year. (Workers in Saskatchewan get three weeks a year).
That means Canadians get less vacation time than workers in Haiti, which is not exactly a beacon of labour rights. In fact, there are only 19 countries in the world where statutory agreements entitle citizens to fewer paid vacations than in Canada. And the majority of them are small pacific islands with a combined population of, like, 10,000 people.
In addition to our measly two weeks off, Canadians are also privy to just six paid public holidays. Though, to be fair, most employers offer nine – New Years, Good Friday, Victoria Day, Canada Day, Labour Day, Thanksgiving, Remembrance Day (NS, NWT, ON and QC excepted), Christmas Day, and Boxing Day.
At least we don’t have it as bad as our neighbours to the South. The United States is the only industrialized nation in the world without a statutory minimum for paid vacation or paid public holidays. And that’s probably part of the reason we in Canada have it so tough – we’d be at quite the competitive disadvantage if we’re lounging around like Europeans while our American friends are opening shop 24/7.
So, where should you move if you’re looking for true work-life balance? Kuwait, apparently. Every worker in Kuwait is entitled to a paid annual leave of 30 days, plus 13 paid public holidays. That’s 43 days off a year. Austria is the most generous realistic-for-Canadians-to-work-in country in the world, with 38 paid days off a year including public holidays. In fact, you’ll be granted at least 30 days of paid leave a year in most countries in Europe.
Anyway, here are 10 awesome summer travel destinations to check out on your precious few days away from the office.