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Comment by derision | Hacker News Reader

I'd rather work in walmart than work in a German factory like my grandfather did. He was able to come home to Italy once a year to see his family.

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If you think that unpredictable American retail shift work would give you more vacation than a German factory, I have a bridge to sell you.

America has zero required vacation per year. Germany has 20 days every year for a five day working-week.

And in Sweden it's 25, the numbers are probably similar across all of Europe (and sometime increases due to employment benefits). And don't mention paternity leave.

You're comparing Germany today with the Germany of the OPs grandfather. Apples and Nazi oranges.

I assumed OP was talking post-war era.

Yes, that's the most likely reading, I'm just making a (poor) joke.

Unfortunately, HN has zero tolerance for humor of any kind :-(

Downvoted for being funny.

The first rule of humor on HN is that you do not even talk about humor on HN. Which rule I have of course just violated.

Note to downvoters: FYIOTLB. And happy new year.

You'd have to go back to Great Grandparents to mix it up with Nazi's, for most people under 50. Maybe Great-Great...

I'm under 40 and my grandpa escaped a concentration camp and gave testimony in the Nuremberg trials.

I'm 41, born when my parents were in their very early 20's, and my Grandpa missed Korea during his draft, he was out before it started. You must have much older parents.

The Korean War started 5 years after WW2, so it sounds like your grandfather missed WW2 by just a couple years.

My mom & grandma both married guys their own age, and had children around 25.

Required and actual are very different animals. Just b/c the govt doesn't say you must doesn't mean employers don't provide good benefits. Reddit always says race to the bottom but a quick look around doesn't support it.

"A quick look around doesn't support it"?

Try talking to people not in developer echo bubble...

I'm just a normal guy who has worked hard to build up a career.

Where are you located that retail workers get anything close to 20 days of vacation annually? (Which is also separate from sick time, maternity leave, etc.)

Even at a fairly cushy corporate job I don't get 20 days of vacation time.

If you work in retail you expect not to have mush PTO. I do consider myself lucky my job offers 6 weeks vacation plus sick/personal time off; but this is one of the reasons I've stayed with them b/c of this benefit.

I still do not think the government should dictate to private businesses in this area.

It’s actually 24 days [1].

[1] https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/burlg/__3.html

That's assuming a (rare) 6-day workweek. If you work 5 days, as most do, you get 20 days by law.

Parent is clearly comparing present day to two generations ago to make an argument that there's been a general positive claim. Present day Germany is completely irrelevant to their point.

Edit: s/claim/change

Even if you were to take that at face value, it's not as if Walmart retail workers are getting vacation time to visit their relatives in a foreign country more than once a year.

Those are not the two significant alternatives you know...

Also, I'd rather not work in WalMart.

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