AmerLisa

In January when my MIL calls to arrange dates to come out and see us because she has to book her holidays for the year, I'll tell her she's making it up. I knew something was fishy.....

And the last job I had before I left the UK was working for Sainsburys......had I stayed into the new year (we moved in January, I quit working for them in December) I was going to have to book my four weeks off for the whole year.

Next time you're there, wander into Tescos or Sainsburys and ask the checkout girl/guy if she has to book her holidays for the whole year. Or ask a nurse....of course there's still the chance my mil is making this up.....

Jerseygirl

There are ex UK nurses who post in here perhaps they could shed a little light on it.

Cat Whisperer

Perhaps I didn't make myself clear in my previous post. I was referring to working in the UK where I worked in the manufacturing/engineering sector, and it is definitely common practice to have 'first come first serve'. And believe me, it was dog eat dog with the guys that had children who wanted some of the school holidays off.

Also, as somebody mentioned, very common in the retail industry and any sector that needs to stay open 24/7. I know hospital staff in both US and UK that have this issue too.

candy wy.

I had to book mine at the beginning of the year.. but could change it if there was a spot available when i wanted
also when I worked in a nursing home we had to book holidays at the beginning of the year...
so i guess in some parts it does happen

Bob

what dream? there's no dream these days.

Life is what you make of it, not the country.

Bob

I haven't found that to be true....CoL is pretty much the same, car might be cheaper but the insurance/tax is much higher etc and no way has housing been cheaper here, rent up in Maine perhaps, but then so would rent in Wales or up north.

Bob

definitely isn't the norm that...in fact I don't think I've known anyone in the UK that has had to give more than a couple weeks notice for a holiday....probably isn't universal, but to say that the giving a years notice is the norm would be well off the mark.

Bob

I've a mate who used to work at HMV for years, he never had to give any more than a weeks notice for a holiday of a week, would have to give a few weeks notice if he wanted to take his whole years worth though

Bob

I did a stint at a car parts manufacturer, they didn't have that requirement, they just hired temps to cover things. You only have to give a long notice if you were going to be gone for 2 weeks or more in one go.

Definitely industry specific, but not something I would call all that common across the country.

Giantaxe

In an attempt to rescue this thread from AmerLisa's normal modus operandi of sidetracking threads into ratholes, here's my take on the "American dream": it's far less obtainable than it was 25 years ago for the simple reason that social mobility is evaporating in the face of global competition. A quarter of a century ago, it was pretty easy for someone with a blue collar job to have steady employment and a very comfortable lifestyle. Nowadays, not so much: many of those jobs have gone forever and the financial pressures for individuals are that much higher from things like health care costs etc. And the cost of getting educated has far outpaced the rate of inflation, with the additional costs weighing down graduates in debt. With a graduate unemployment rate of about 35%, we now have a situation where large numbers of folks who should used to be illustrative of social mobility are now swamped with debt and lacking healthcare.

AmerLisa

Why would it be hard to think it wasn't the norm for retail (grocery stores in this case) or nurses? My mil is not working in a nhs hospital, she works in a convalescent hospital, is that different? Don't know. But she has to plan her year out for her holidays. My husband's aunt is the same way. First hand knowledge when I worked for Sainsbury's, I was going to have to do the same thing.

Sally Redux

Nice try.

AmerLisa

Much better to sidetrack the thread then to have to read your doom and gloom. You're depressing.... But what I think is quite funny, with all that doom and gloom you still live here. And I bet you wouldn't leave, regardless of how bad it got.

AmerLisa

Doom and gloom or my sidetrack...... I'm sure there's a poll here somewhere.

Sally Redux

So you don't see any financial problems here?