As article notes, people tend to not take time off unless it’s enforced in US. Early in my career I used to joke that my accumulated vacation time was my severa

As article notes, people tend to not take time off unless it’s enforced in US. Early in my career I used to joke that my accumulated vacation time was my severance buffer to at will employment. It’s sad to think that it was both true and super misguided. US sorely needs federal minimums for time off, parental paid leave (that doesn’t exempt people from small employers, who currently get next to nothing), sick leave and minimum compensation/notice period if they are to be let go (unless some egregious cause). Many employers already offer these and if we spread it out with small incremental taxes, it wouldn’t disproportionately hurt small employers either. This will give employees basic stability and reduce anxiety, most likely boosting productivity. Having nothing to fall back on definitely limited me at the start of my career.