Pulaski

It's not that big a deal. I met a South African solicitor a few weeks ago who has recently relocated here and is going through conversion courses and exams. He was telling me that his experience in South Africa is much like that of a British solicitor, but his overall opinion seemed to be that the courses and exams to qualify as a lawyer in the US were a chore, not a challenge.

Michael

As far as the Silicon Valley, 15 or more vacation days to start seemed to be the most common in 2008.

Best Places to Work

Hotscot

Yes. I'm aware. I used to work there. Adobe and Apple

But one cannot make the argument that generous vacation is the norm for the US.

We already know that and advise prospective immigrants of that all the time.

AmerLisa

I would say it's probably become more the norm, for professionals. Maybe not for little start up companies, but certainly the heavy hitters are going to be a bit more competitive with each other.

Yorkieabroad

Funnily enough, I'm having lunch tomorrow with a buddy I've known for 20+ years, who was lead legal counsel for a multinational petrochemical company, but has just quit to contemplate life, the universe and his navel. He is a Brit, but seems to have been stalking me round the world, as he arrived here 10+ years ago, just after we did, from Singapore.He is a UK trained/qualified, which worked fine in Singapore, but came here (Texas) and decided to put himself through the New York bar exams. We basically didn't see him for 6 months, but after that he emerged as a dual qualified (or whatever they call it) solicitor/lawyer/attorney. He reckoned there was nothing magical about it - just a load of grind to get everything memorized, and he was away. His main problem was readapting to study life while still working.

Hotscot

But then you'd be wrong.

Small businesses, (with less vacation time), employ more professionals than large businesses, (the heavy hitters). And this is not limited to start ups. Therefore not the norm.

However you try to spin it.

If you stated that often larger corporations offer longer vacation time than the norm, then that would be more accurate.

AmerLisa

Perhaps...

But competition (in this case for employees) can go a long way. I read a thread on another forum about vacation times and how people were turning down offers with less time (even though there was more money thrown on the table) for more time. This was a current thread and the company in question (for less time) was Amazon.

Maybe change will come and maybe not, but it certainly seems as if there are more people wanting that extra time and willing to negotiate more for it.

Hotscot

Nope.

Not perhaps

But I'm done with this topic, work to get on with.
Glad to help.

MostlyYank

TMR I'm mostly a dammed Yank I grew up with my family hosting 'me family and mum and grandmum's' friends from ze old country as guests, usually for 6 weeks a time or longer, and I spent a fair deal of time in the north growing up.

My thinking is, if you view things through this or that kind of lens you might miss some important things, maybe some nice things. I may well be someone you don't agree with politically, but consider, if I, say, didn't like socialism because I don't like being told what to (), I still love England and am seriously thinking about retiring there. Also consider that the US one learns about through the TV is vastly different than the one that actually exists. I've never had a gun fired at me (though I was around one drawn - VERY bad neighborhood though). I've never been robbed.

I have no idea if you'll like it here. I'm beginning to dislike some things here strongly myself, the hideous big-box store areas spring to mind immediately. But if you decide to come pray you keep an open mind and embrace the differences Even if you decide in the end to leave, at least you gave it a fair shake.

That's my overall theory of travelling in a nutshell btw.

If chance brings you to Cleveland (as punishment presumably?) drop me a line and I'll buy you a pint.

Regardless good luck to you and yours.

Pete

PS everyone, I really enjoyed reading the frank comments about the US.

scrubbedexpat091

Whats the definition of professionals?

Is a college educated hotel manager a professional?

A paramedic?

A nurse?

I think using the word professional is too vague as there are lots of professions where I'd consider the job to be professional, but get nowhere near 15+ days off a year.

I have family in the above professions and they get between 0 (nurse) to 10 paid days off per year.

Hotscot

Pulaski

It used to mean a lawyer, a doctor/dentist, an architect, an accountant, an actuary, or a teacher, plus a few others, a vet for example. The requirement used to be a degree, a higher level of certification, and a professional association to provide, support, training and uphold standards.

Over the past fifty or so years more and more occupations have acquired the trappings of "a profession", making the dividing line much harder to define. Some occupations have damaged their "brand" and are no longer held in the high regard they used to be, notably the teachers.

Hotscot

And someone who gets 15+ days vacation

scrubbedexpat091

Makes sense, suppose the increase in professions has gone along with the increase in needing higher education, training and such then in the past. A nurse 50 years ago likely didn't need the same amount of education as they do today for example.

Jerseygirl