>And of course, here in the U.S., there is no guarantee of any paid vacation. Paid vacations are offered as an incentive to lure the most qualified candidates to a corporation. They are not a guarantee. The average is 1 week the first year of employment, 2 weeks after that, and then it increases a day or so each year. Some companies offer more, some less. The service industry typically sees no paid vacation though, citizen or illegal immigrant, it doesn't make a difference.
>
>Hi, Tracy,
>
>True, they're never a guarantee, but these days it's pretty common to see companies offering either a week or two weeks in the first year. Actually, I think for "professional positions", 2 weeks the first year is becoming more the norm. They're standard enough that I'm not sure I've ever seen paid vacations offered these days as "incentives". Maybe it's a matter of semantics: to me, incentives are things like bonuses tied to performance, paying for conferences, etc.
>
>For service industries, again, no guarantees, but I was under the impression that the majority offered at least 1 week in the first year (for full-time employees). Even "permanent part-timers" (20-29 hrs a week) at places like bookstores, mall jobs, etc., often get a week the first year.
>

One week to start is becoming much more common. Not so long ago it was practically standard to start with two weeks, with the only restriction being that you often couldn't take vacation days your first two or three months on the job. (Reasonably enough IMO).

As an independent at the moment I have mixed feelings about the holiday tomorrow. Of course it's always nice having a day off, and the 4th of July is one of the more enjoyable holidays for me. I just have to tell that little accountant's voice in my head, the one that wants to work out how much I am essentially paying for the day off, to shut up....

Have a good 4th yourself, and here's hoping you have enough fingers left to type on Thursday, LOL.