civilservant

In my case, it has, in the past, given the general public a way to single me out for either praise or criticism to supervisors.

'That British guy'

SultanOfSwing

Until you start losing it and nobody cares anymore

My vowels have started really misbehaving lately.

My sister recently had her wedding reception in Ballymena (though to be fair, even Enniskillen is close to Carrick in American terms). That was the last time we were over, in late 2019. I'd go back every year if it was feasible but even though we stay with my sister, it's still not cheap. Living very close to one of the largest and busiest international airports in the world does make it very easy though when we can afford it.

Caveat there too, I'm fortunate enough to have 21 days of leave (which is really just combined vacation, sick and personal days). My wife is either on 10 or 15 but 10 is much more common here unless you're lucky enough to work for a company that awards more. Most jobs start with none, or maybe 5 for your first year.

Homesickness will affect everyone differently. I will never not have it and I would move back tomorrow if the stars aligned. Some people don't get it at all.

Usually it's not that cold for more than a few days or weeks (it has got down to -40C but that's much less common). It is not unusual for it to be between -5C and -10C though. The air is usually very dry in winter though, so if the sun's out and there's no wind it isn't too bad.

People go out in it all the time, they just layer up. Snow might make certain places inaccessible if it's piled up. I hate snow though.

Even in a small town, that might be difficult. Single income families do exist but I make half decent money and honestly I'd struggle if I had to live alone.

I'd survive like, but it wouldn't be a lot of fun.

A lot of that will depend on your visa as well. I think it's the L visas that can offer a path to residence and citizenship, but someone smarter than I am will correct me there.

RichMitch

Wow - the annual leave difference is definitely something I should consider. I work for the Civil Service here and we get 25 days annual leave plus 13 days statutory days as well (14 days in 2022 due to the Queen's Platinum Jubliee ).

That is great to hear that you can still get out for a walk/exercise at times throughout winter. I get cabin fever quite quickly if I'm stuck indoors for long periods and find the best medicine is to go somewhere for a walk or go for a coffee somewhere.

I think that very soon we may need to consider our current economic circumstances and the fact we only have one main source of income from my job.

Very hard with a single income and most people we are friendly with have 2 incomes - albeit it's a double edged sword in a way because they have to fork out maybe £1k a month for child care!

We do find it tight getting through each month at the moment and a lot of things look set on getting more expensive which would squeeze us even more.

Rumour has it here that with the recent invasion of Ukraine, energy prices and oil prices are going to continue to go in the wrong direction.

civilservant

So did I (hence the username) and it was certainly a culture shock. Employment protections here are non existent as a result of never having a very strong labor union moment.

Gerogia (my home state) is an 'at will' state. You can be terminated at any time, for any reason. With no notice or severance pay.

Lion in Winter

The whole country is "at will" now, with just a few specific policy exceptions in certain states.

https://worldpopulationreview.com/st...loyment-states

RichMitch

Goodness me - yes I did hear there is a bit of a "hire and fire" culture depending on whereabouts you are based in America. Is it safe to say that if you are a good member of staff who performs well consistently, then you can expect to be relatively safe in your role?

Are employment levels normally good though in general over there?

Yes I am completely spoilt when it comes to annual leave right now but sometimes I don't think it is all that it's cracked up to be if I'm honest. For times when we have holiday plans or plans to do a few home improvements all well and good.

But there are a lot of occasions I end up taking time off just for the sake of it (and to use the leave up ahead of a new financial year!)

Lion in Winter

You miss the holiday when you don't have it.

There is no security based on doing a good job, although of course doing a good job is better than not doing a good job. If there is a re-org, or a change of leadership, or someone wants to organise the teams differently, or there is a budget constraint, people just get dropped. I met all the "good job" factors in 2020 - got dropped when the covid cutbacks came, just like that. After 8 years in that particular office and 15 total with the organisation.

SultanOfSwing

I was a civil servant before I moved, and the leave allowance was the same back in the early 2000s. It took some getting used to when I started working here, but I've been lucky enough to have slightly more days than average the last few years and I don't take that for granted.

The main thing that gets in the way of going for a walk outside of the cities, is the lack of footpaths by roads. Most small towns have them in the town centre, but not always on residential streets. We've a mix in my town, in and around my street I have to walk on the road but there are sidewalks closer to the town centre. We do have a walking/cycle path along the main through road, which my street leads to, and that in turn leads to walking and cycle trails through areas of land owned and maintained by the local forest preserve.

Not everywhere is as walkable, but just about every big city will be.

It's tough being a single income family anywhere you go, but at the same time having a parent at home saves money elsewhere.

Health insurance is going to be the big factor here, but if you were to find work with a big, international company, they may be able to be competitive there.

My company does not cover much at all, but my wife's employer, which is a school district, does cover a lot. She pays around $20/week to cover herself. I pay $184.50 a week to cover me and the two kids. She has a $1,000.00 deductible, I have a $10,000.00 max family out of pocket. A lot of variation even within the same general area.

The oil prices always go up and down anyway, even without outside interference, but in general, petrol is much cheaper here than it is in Europe, and even Canada.

RichMitch

Absolutely, it would take me some time to get used to only having 5 or 10 annual leave days per year.

That must have been a horrible experience for you in 2020, I am sorry to hear that. I got very annoyed when I got laid off in 2016 after 2 years with a company (due to budget issues) so I can only imagine how bad it must have felt after 15 years there.

Last year we chanced upon a Jim Carrey film we'd never seen before called "Fun with Dick and Jane" - about an employee losing his job along with hundreds of others and then his struggle to get another decent job which took a long time. It was quite funny in places but it brought back painful memories from my 6 month pursuit for a job in 2016!

civilservant

In a word - No. Employers use this to their advantage to drive employees to higher and higher production levels and goals.

In terms of unemployment? They've been higher than they are now, but lower too.

yeah you won't be doing that here. Some aren't bad though. I have been with my current employer (in different roles) since 2 months after I arrived in the US. This year is 9 years of service. I accrue 2.62 hours of PTO (Paid Time Off) a every week, and I also get most federal holidays (except Presidents Day and Columbus Day) paid but it certainly didn't start off that way. I didn't get any PTO at all until I completed my first year, and that was only 10 days.

It should be noted that my PTO allowance is to used for 'sick days' too, which they consider excessive after 3 sick days in a rolling colander year and will get you written up. Not periods of sickness, but actual sick days.

RichMitch

Have working conditions improved in recent years in terms of time spent at work/time spent at home? I know it would depend on what you work at.

Over here pretty much everyone who works with a computer has worked from home for 2 years now and employers are now looking at introducing a "hybrid model" with staff in the office 2/3 days a week. All this is subject to change though depending on Covid.

What way does long-term sickness get handled in America? Is that where your health insurance steps in and kind of pays your wages while you recover?

I was off work for 2 months last year after getting some surgery on a leg but hopefully that was just a one-off!

Petrol prices are crackers here just now - £1.50 a litre!

civilservant

If you don't have Long Term Disability Cover, which you usually can get through your employer, you won't be getting a dime.

The Federal Family/Medical Leave Act (FMLA) only gives you 12 weeks of cover with your employer. During that time they cannot terminate you and must let you return/ They do NOT have to let you return to the same job you left. If you can't return after that, you'll be terminated in most circumstances.

If you are referring to Social Security Disability, then you have to have paid enough into the system to even qualify, and then it usually takes multiple years and at least one appeal to get approved.

The 'safety net' that you are used to in the UK simply does not exist in the US.

RichMitch

Wow - that is not great. That probably explains my long held perception that American employees seem to be a lot more energised and driven to some degree on occasions.

I used to work for an American investment bank in Belfast and I interacted daily with US staff who at times appeared to be a lot more keen and positive than local staff were

civilservant

My wifes employer disciplines their production staff if they do not achieve 125% productivity in a week. Which kind of negates the point of having a 125% figure in my mind. If it's the minimum they accept, isn't it just 100%? I'm just glad she isn't production staff.

SultanOfSwing

Yes, and no. It really depends on your employer. My wife is HR in a high school, so she worked from home between March and around October of 2020. I work for a landscaper, who was considered agricultural and therefore an essential service. I had the option to work from home but they would have been up my arse 24/7 making me send reports of what I was doing, so I just came in because I wasn't dealing with that.

Everyone's essentially back in now. America won't let go of the idea that you can get a day's work in less than 8 hours so everyone has to sit arond with their thumb up their arse looking busy for half the day because of reasons.

I'm a project manager, so I can put in longer days during the summer but right now unless it's snowing there's no need for me to be in the office at all, and yet here I am.

I'm not objective here though, so don't take that as anything other than anecdotal.

Not quite. Heath insurance is what turns your $50,000.00 hospital bill into a $10,000.00 bill. Or what makes your $200.00, 30-day supply of medicaton a $10.00 one.

You're thinking of short term disability, which is a form of insurance here which will pay your wages up to a certain percentage while you are off sick, and your job is held until you return.

Long term disability will essentially pay you if you need to take multiple years off and is along the same lines. Usually both are provided by employers, but private plans exist too.

I think it's the equivalent of arond 80p a liter round here. It's $3.60 per US gallon, roughly.