Labor Day is a holiday. How about giving U.S. workers a paid break?

As many of us prepare to celebrate Labor Day with our last summer barbecues, let's also take a moment to reflect on the many ways the United States honors its workers in word but not deed. Holiday time is a prime example. The U.S. is the only developed nation that does not require employers to offer their workers as much as one measly paid day off a year. Never mind the 'longer vacation periods' once promised as a benefit of advancing technology. Just under 25% of U.S. workers receive no paid vacation periods at all. This is wrong — in every way it is possible to be wrong. Just under 25% of U.S. workers receive no paid vacation periods at all. This is wrong — in every way it is possible to be wrong. In the European Union, all employees receive a minimum of 20 vacation days, plus several paid holidays. In Canada, workers at federally regulated jobs get 10 days. The same is true for full-time employees in famously hardworking Japan. Moreover, some nations take Labor Day very seriously. In France, most employees are barred from working on May 1, their Labor Day, even if they want to do so. In the U.S., on the other hand, YouGov found in 2023 that 11% of us said we would be working on Labor Day specifically. In the U.S., one cannot seriously consider vacation-time disparities without noting the evidence they present of race and class divides. A Center for American Progress assessment in 2016 found that white, Black and Asian workers were more likely to have access to paid vacation time than Latinos. A Pew Research Center survey in 2023 found that 1 in 5 Black Americans feared getting fired for using all of their allotted vacation time. Paid holiday leave also varies by professional sector. While about 80% of professional and managerial workers are eligible for it, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, only about 60% of service workers can claim the same. Almost everyone working in finance is eligible for vacation time, 96%, but the share drops to 46% for leisure and hospitality workers. And if you ever wondered why people pine for lost manufacturing jobs, know that almost all such workers are eligible for paid vacation, too. Employers would do better to encourage us workers to take a paid break. Doing anything else is penny-wise and pound-foolish. For one thing, well-rested and refreshed workers are almost certainly better for the bottom line. They are more productive and more focused, and they are more loyal. Those with access to paid time off are significantly less likely to quit their jobs than those who enjoy no such perk, and an 18-year study observed a major jump in the number of those who stick with the same employer when they receive more than 11 paid days off versus those with less. (Reminder: Replacing employees is expensive!) Finally, paid time off also improves employee health, something worth noting in the U.S., where employers pay for health insurance. Taking vacation time from work results in fewer heart attacks (and, in turn, fewer deaths from heart attacks). Even better than relying on the kindness and generosity of individual employers would be if the U.S. required vacation by law. In 1955, Walter Reuther, the powerful head of the United Automobile Workers union, testified to Congress about advances in technology, which, he projected, would be a major boon for all who labor for a living, offering not only shorter work weeks but also 'longer vacation periods.' We all know no such thing happened. Employers would do better to encourage us workers to take a paid break. Doing anything else is penny-wise and pound-foolish. But as in Reuther's day, we are on the cusp of technological advances almost certain to cut into the number of hours workers need to get tasks done. Meanwhile, productivity gains going to workers in the form of compensation are at a record low, while interest is high in remote work, flexible work and 32-hour workweeks. Simply put, we certainly think we could use a break. Polls show that 80% to 90% of us support making paid vacation a right, with little difference between Democrats, Republicans and independents. The Congressional Progressive Caucus has made the right to paid leisure time away from the job a key plank in its affordability agenda, specifically endorsing a bill championed by Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Rep. Seth Magaziner, D-R.I., that guarantees all full-time workers two paid weeks off every year. (Sanders called the current U.S. situation an 'international embarrassment.' He's right.) In today's Republican-dominated Congress, the bill is all but certain to go nowhere, but that could change if Democrats take control of one or both chambers in the November elections. For now, be prepared to fight for your right to kick back and do nothing. In the past, powerful lobbyist groups such as the National Federation of Independent Business have spoken against requiring employers to offer paid vacation, while the National Restaurant Association doesn't even want to mandate paid sick days. This time is unlikely to be different. There's no small irony in the fact that for mandatory paid vacation to become the law of the land, we're going to need to work hard to make it a reality. Helaine Olen Helaine R. Olen is the author of "Pound Foolish: Exposing the Dark Side of the Personal Finance Industry" and a co-author of "The Index Card: Why Personal Finance Doesn't Have to Be Complicated." She has been a columnist for The Washington Post and Slate, and her work has appeared in numerous other publications, including The New York Times and The Atlantic. She is managing editor of the American Economic Liberties Project. Become a Member to join the discussion Comments