Mummy in the foothills

My Dh didn't even get a paid day off for us to have our babies, lucky they came early in the morning so he could get off to work, and he also had to take an unpaid day off to bring us home from the hospital.
So 4 days after a c-section I was home alone in a rural area with a newborn and a 5 year old and a Dh who was gone 15-16hrs a day.
Quality of life isn't something I equate with US either.
My 14yo practically begs us to up sticks and move him to Wales, where he can catch trains and swim in lakes and go to the beach with his friends without getting heatstroke. He was born here and has only been around those teenagers a total of 12 weeks in his life. So It's a grass is greener thing I suppose.

For all the things you feel you can get from living in US, there must be a place/area in UK where you can find what you love and still have 4-6 weeks off a year and NHS coverage. If you think that area is too expensive in UK chances are the equivilant place in US is also too expensive by the time you add up all the things you have to pay out.

Bill_S

In the Big Book of <your company's> Transgressions, that must be in the preface.

Bob

Until you lose your job...

And hardly representative of middle class life in America really is it...

pejpm1

but in the EU you could certainly fire someone for that!

The whole 'work at will' idea is utterly ridiculous. It basically means workers have no rights whatsoever.

Titchski

I was shocked - appalled in fact - that I wasn't attacked by a black lesbian club footed dwarf Chavette wearing a hooded top in the arrival lounge at Birmingham International Airport. Was a tremendous disappointment to an otherwise jolly nice trip home. The Daily Mail has a lot to answer for - they got my hopes right up that I'd at least have a stab wound to remember the visit by

Titchski

Bingo. Apparently though, in a right to work state, you can quit without giving notice. Of course according to employers in those right to work states, "that is unprofessional" and frowned upon, so will inevitably hinder your job prospects. In fact, there was much sucking in of breath and tut tutting when I "only gave 9 days notice"

pejpm1

I went home to London last weekend and during the 4 days I was there I was stabbed 5 times, ate something that increased my risk of cancer, was mugged by a 'hoodie', got converted to Islam by an extremist Muslim, and to top it all off a group of Polish people stole all my families jobs! Luckily my family were all able to claim benefits equating to 80 grand a year which is more than most hard working middle class families so now they live in a huge detached house with sky tv, they get a free car AND they dont have to work for a living.

Then I returned to NYC and it was paradise. No crime, no poverty, a fair job market for all....man, we've got it so good over here.

Confused1

As an fyi - I have lost my job on 2 ocassions, but was able on both ocassions to find another position - and yes, I know I am lucky to have been able to do that. As for representative, in this area, Silicon Valley, it is representative, but I agree it is not representative of the US as a whole. Most our friends here in Silicon Valley, who are all college graduates, all own homes, and have some flexibility in their jobs. Those that don't have jobs such as nursing, where this is not really possible. We all have less vacation time than in the UK, but seem to do more with the time we have.

danfan

OMG how gross. But as said earlier, in UK you'd surely be able to fire for that. I mean indecent exposure doesn't even begin to cover that.

Exactly. What are the job losses and uninsured figures this year? Even before these economy problems, it was shocking. Now all those extra who have lost their jobs had better pray they don't get sick or have an accident!

danfan

You really were lucky. Around us, businesses are closing daily so those who lose a job really have no options or anywhere to turn for another job. They are all SOL.

Ray

Yup .. my wife lost her job 15 months ..still never found anything else
and she even tried Walmart ...

Confused1

I really do understand that the job situation in the US is not good right now, but are people saying that it is better in the UK? Or that if you can't find a job, at least you have benefits to rely on? Since this recession thing is being felt globally, isn't it the same situation in the UK? What makes the UK situation any better?

Also - should one base decisions on what could happen, or wait and see? I get the feeling that some people would leave the US and move to the UK just because if they lose a job, they may not find another, would not have benefits, and no free healthcare. But why fix it if it is not broke? There is no one answer, everyone's situation is different. Some don't mind the risk, others prefer stability and security.

danfan

Um, you're partly right, at least from my POV. I'd consider going back home to avoid my senior years being filled with worries about my health.

Mostly I'd go because I just prefer a society that is more prepared to pay through tax when you're earning so you don't have to hold a fundraiser to get your kid chemotherapy if you do lose your job, or like a neighbor local to me have to bury your 20 year old son who commited suicide because the insurance refused to pay for his pain meds to deal with his Chrohn's Disease.

With kids, I'd rather have a life of stability and security than risk, yes.

I'm hanging on hoping things will change at least a little....

danfan

That sucks

Ray

Your not kidding ... I never get any peace and quiet now ...