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Hopefully I can find an employer with health insurance, or I'll pay it out of pocket.
I do not want to travel back to Europe for healthcare, it's probably fine in most countries but here, guess I can say it, in Sweden, it's going downhill fast.
The more I read about US healthcare, the more scared I get
That's the biggest difference between the US and Europe, insurances and healthcare. Here, one does not need to care since it's included, at least healthcare, not vision or dental, which is not cheap at all.
And nowadays more and more people buy private health insurance. Why you ask? Because of long waiting lines, to get the care you need when you need it, not when it comes available.
We're closing several pregnancy units, so to-be mothers have to travel up to 2 hours or more, to give birth. Many patients have to lay in the hallways at hospitals cause there're not room.
A lot of people even go to southern Europe for treatment. Which I find ironic since we're about 10 million people, highest taxes in the world, and can't even give top notch care to everybody. Not sure where that money goes...
As for employment rates, I don't think we can compare the percentages between countries, since we measure differently. Here, you're considered employed if you work at least 1 hr/week or are enlisted in some sort of job-finding program.
And as an Accountant, I have seen how tax money is going to employers who cannot afford to employ anyone, thus less people are unemployed, but they still are getting paid by the rest of us.
There're many ways to hide unemployment...
The problem with America is that nobody wants to work in high level healthcare positions. Too many nurses not enough qualified doctors. In other countries, they have lots of doctors, nurses, but equipment not as state of the art as the US. Because in US, big businesses get hospitals to spend all this money constantly upgrading equipment because of profits $$ but very little doctors around capable of serving a larger population.
We need to push for STEM degree and make starting pay palatable for graduates and not give them starting pay less than some loan processor or starting bank associate that only needs a 2 year degree to make $50k.
Healthcare is a different issue that goes beyond labor. Most US companies offer healthcare insurance but healthcare costs are just plain expensive in the US. That's not the employers fault, they struggle with it as well. Healthcare costs are actually going up worldwide, Europe as well. But I see it as a distinct separate issue.
Even Europeans pay for it beyond what they pay in taxes, in terms of supplemental health care insurance.
Not really. The supplemental health care insurance in those countries are a far cry from the outrageous situation in America. Not comparable at all, aside from the name.
We pay more in taxes for health care than what Europeans pay in taxes for their national health care system. Its hard to believe but its true. So we pay for a national health care system in America but dont get it. We pay about $5000 per person per year in taxes (Medicaid, Medicare, VA care) for health care, thats more than what Europeans pay in taxes for health care (around $3500-$4000 per person per year).
Not really. The supplemental health care insurance in those countries are a far cry from the outrageous situation in America. Not comparable at all, aside from the name.
We pay more in taxes for health care than what Europeans pay in taxes for their national health care system. Its hard to believe but its true. So we pay for a national health care system in America but dont get it. We pay about $5000 per person per year in taxes (Medicaid, Medicare, VA care) for health care, thats more than what Europeans pay in taxes for health care (around $3500-$4000 per person per year).
Once again, health care costs in this country are not a labor problem. Your dispute isn't with the employer, but in the health care system in this country...and there are dozens of topics already floating around in the other forums. There is no requirement or law or regulation that you can stipulate to US business owners that will fix the problem of healthcare costs, it's more complex than that.
Maybe this thread will go in this direction, but I consider it out of scope and a distraction to this discussion.
Of course we have unions. What we don't have is a national priority about the importance of taking vacation time. All over Europe vacation time starts at something like 6 weeks/year. Here, we think nothing of being worked to death because it's still better than what we had before the unions brought in radical innovations like 8-hour work days, weekends off, and so forth.
Yes, you are including all employment which includes lots of part time workers who pull the average down. The more part-timers in the workforce, the more the average hours worked is dragged down.
From this it appears that Germany has a part-time/full-time ratio of 39%, Netherlands at a whopping 55.8%, Belgium 32%, Canada at 22%, France at 23%, US at 22%.
Yes, some of the European numbers on average hours worked may be understated due to the large number of part-timers they have. I don't think your intention was to disclose that. But there you go...
From this it appears that Germany has a part-time/full-time ratio of 39%, Netherlands at a whopping 55.8%, Belgium 32%, Canada at 22%, France at 23%, US at 22%.
Yes, some of the European numbers on average hours worked may be understated due to the large number of part-timers they have. I don't think your intention was to disclose that. But there you go...
you are just linking the same link as you did in your previous post. Besides, you dont factor in how many hours part time workers work.
The problem with America is that nobody wants to work in high level healthcare positions. Too many nurses not enough qualified doctors. In other countries, they have lots of doctors, nurses, but equipment not as state of the art as the US. Because in US, big businesses get hospitals to spend all this money constantly upgrading equipment because of profits $$ but very little doctors around capable of serving a larger population.
We need to push for STEM degree and make starting pay palatable for graduates and not give them starting pay less than some loan processor or starting bank associate that only needs a 2 year degree to make $50k.
Problem is student loan amounts and cost of living in college towns. Med students in Europe likely have much higher quality of life than the med student in the USA living like a dirty hobo incurring 6 figures in student loans driving a jalopy that does not help him get laid.
Our culture does not support STEM or doctors. Engineers are wierdos and don't earn the attention of women and doctors only do after they are in full practice and making good money. Oh yea and the soul crushing debt.
I think a lot of STEM and doctors from the USA would move to Europe if the process was stream lined. If Europe (and Russia) played their cards right there would be a major brain drain out of the USA.
From this it appears that Germany has a part-time/full-time ratio of 39%, Netherlands at a whopping 55.8%, Belgium 32%, Canada at 22%, France at 23%, US at 22%.
Yes, some of the European numbers on average hours worked may be understated due to the large number of part-timers they have. I don't think your intention was to disclose that. But there you go...
That's because working part time in the USA does not cut it when it comes to COL, where as in the Netherlands it obviously does otherwise half the population would not be doing it.
Here we go again. America sucks. Hey, the borders are open if you don't like it here!
Benefits vary dramatically from company to company. Learn some skills and become someone in need at a business. Then you'll get perks like vacation and great pay. Not so much then you're the guy draining the fries.
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