Not everyone has the same holiday entitlements. While some of us live to work others work to live, it all comes down to life choices. As you start off on your path towards a career, or even if you are thinking of a possible career change, knowing how much holiday leave you are entitled to is invaluable. So what jobs offer you the greatest holiday entitlements and which ones offer you the least? Here’s a list that tries to cut through the confusion and offer you a simple clear cut guide on what to expect.
Teachers
Most people will tell you that teachers get the greatest holiday entitlements. It is true that teachers do definitely get a lot (roughly 12 weeks a year). There are also definite perks to being a teacher; for example if/ when you have a family you will have holidays at the same time as your children. You also have the security of having a job for life that you can take with you wherever you travel.
Engineer
The jobs that give you the highest leave entitlements are professional positions that work on a shift basis. Take for example working on an oil rig. Working on a three month on three month off basis means that you get six months off a year. That’s a lot of holiday time, but soending three months working solidly with almost no entertainment is not everybodies cup of tea.
Construction Worker/ Manufacturing Sector
Most people working in these types of jobs are entitled to the minimum amount of holiday leave as prescribed by national legislation. In countries like England or Australia, this means 4 weeks or 20 days paid holiday a year. In Canada it would mean just two weeks. Obviously this does not include national holidays, which you should also get off.
Doctor/ Nurse/ Police
Working in stressful environments with long shifts, like doctors, nurses and even policemen do, entitles you to more holiday time than the average office worker. Depending on which country you are a resident in, you can expect up to six weeks of paid vacation per year with the option of more up to two weeks unpaid leave should you desire it.
Civil Servant
Being a civil servant entitles you to just four weeks paid holiday per year. However, with the provision of flexi time you can actually accumulate more holiday leave. This is a great system that rewards your hard work with extra leave. Of course there is a limit on how much extra leave you can get in total!
