[laura26075]

Partly true. If you have never worked you can get Social Security from a spouse who worked. We contribute a part of our paycheck to Social Security, but it seems like it’s not going to be enough to cover all of us by the time those of us in our 30s and 40s retire. There is also medical coverage for senior citizens, but it doesn’t cover the prescription drugs, which cost a fortune, often 3-4 times as much as they cost in other countries for the same drugs. 2 weeks of paid vacation is typical, sometimes more if you’ve been at a company a longer time or have a higher level job, but it seems like most people change jobs a lot. Most companies have a rule that you are ‘vested’ in the retirement plan after a certain amount of time, say, five years, so even if they fire you, you still can receive some money based on how long you worked there. It probably won’t be enough, though. We are expected to save on our own for retirement, and there are tax benefits to doing so. My company matches part of the money I put in my retirement account (called a 401K), and I can invest the money however I wish. Sadly, Unions are becoming less and less common as companies hope to convince workers that they have a common interest and should not be at odds with each other. I disagree. People at the bottom don’t get paid enough to prepare for retirement by saving money, buying a home, and so on. And the same low-wage people often don’t get any paid vacation or medical coverage – they are just paid for the time they work and that’s it. It’s not uncommon for workers who get vacation time to be too busy at work to take the time off, whether it’s true or only in their imagination I don’t know, but in my observation, Americans tend to have a strong work ethic – many of us feel responsible for our jobs being done well, even if it takes extra time and effort. Is it worth it? I take satisfaction in my job being done properly, and I do get a large part of my self-worth from my job. I’ve had other jobs I hated, but that’s incentive to change and find something better, and if it means learning something new or getting educated, I make that a priority. But I don’t have children, so I know it’s different for others.

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Name : laura26075, Gender : F, Age : 41, City : los angeles, State : CA, Country : United States, Social class : Upper middle class, 

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