I was born and raised in the US. The more time I spend in the adult, full-time-working world, I realize how fucked the US is compared to Europe. There is no guaranteed time off here, hell some employers give none at all. There is very little guaranteed time off for new mothers and NO guaranteed payment for them.
While it varies by country, Europeans generally enjoy AT LEAST 25 guaranteed days off a year PLUS holidays for every job, even low level ones. As an American I cannot believe how great that must be. Additionally, most if not all members of the EU offer at least 6 months maternity leave with some amount of payment to the family during this time. As one more bonus, basically all European cities are safer than American ones.
Why the hell does anyone come to the US? Is it just easier than getting into Europe? I know immigrating to Europe as an American is very difficult (trust me I’ve checked).
Edit: Thought I’d mention what triggered this rant. I started a new job a few weeks ago that offers 10 vacation days and 12 sick days a year. With the majority being sick days, I assumed those could be used for vacation as well. Nope, 10 days only. It’s BS.