Benefits-a-go-go

Now that we both have employment contracts, we are just starting to understand the full meaning of 'employment benefits.' We knew before moving here that New Zealand employers would give us more holiday time than American employers, but that is really just the beginning.

Consider:

By law, we have 11 public holidays. If required to work on a public holiday, we get extra pay.

Also by law, we get four weeks of annual holiday leave (Lindsay's position actually allows FIVE weeks - oh yes). The stated purpose of the 4-week holiday allowance is "to have a break from work and enjoy an extended period of rest and relaxation." We are not aware of anyone in America ever being allowed four weeks' holiday, much less being encouraged to take it. An exception might be professors who get to take a sabatical, but we didn't know anyone who got to do that.

Our positions also give us the run-of-the-mill sick leave, bereavement leave, domestic leave (to look after a sick spouse/partner/dependent), and "long service" leave (extra holiday for those who have been with the company many years).

And this rocks - we also both have "tea breaks" written into our contracts. We think this must be required by law. For 10-15 minutes every morning and every afternoon, we shall stop working and enjoy a cup of tea. Or you could have coffee during the designated tea break, if that's more your thing.

Virtually all businesses shut down for an extended period over Christmas and New Year. From what we understand, the country just kind of stops. This shut down does not apply to necessary services, such as hospitals or pubs. Gareth's contract provides that his company will be closed from mid-December until the second week of January. We're banking on Lindsay's employer shutting down then too, as we're already planning on spending a couple of those weeks in Auckland and Milford Sound.

So in summary, we have a lot of time off. And we think that's the way it should be. Work to live, don't live to work.

It's not just all the time off that's so great though - there's so much more. We are both eligible to pay into KiwiSaver, a retirement savings plan. Similar to what's available in the States, you pay a percentage of your salary into the fund before taxes. KiwiSaver gives you $1,000 just for signing up, and then matches your contribution dollar for dollar up to 4% of your salary. KiwiSaver is pretty good, but Lindsay's employer has its own retirement plan that's even better - contributions are matched at 150% (receive an added $1.50 for every dollar invested) up to 9% of your salary. Incredible!

Because there is nationalised health care here, health insurance is not an absolute must-have, but is available for purchase. We can get coverage through Lindsay's employer at a discounted rate. We're not entirely sure yet what this extra coverage would give us that we don't already have, but believe that it would speed up the process if we ever need to have surgery. The cost is a fraction of what we paid for health insurance in the States.

Lindsay also gets an "Activa" card, which is basically a debit card that can be used for health-related purchases, from prescription drugs to running shoes. The idea is to promote healthy living. Lindsay also gets a wardrobe allowance that will offset the cost of professional clothes - but it only applies to suits etc. bought from a certain store and with the corporate logo on them. Still, pretty cool.

All in all, it seems to us that New Zealand really strives to have a healthy and satisfied work force. Don't get us wrong - we certainly weren't abused and mistreated in our American jobs, but we were also never encouraged to take an extended break for rest and relaxation. In America, employers talked about the importance of a "work-life balance," but here, it seems they actually achieve it. Stepping back, it's really striking now just how hard Americans work, and conversely, why New Zealand will never be a world power. We cannot stress this next point enough: We are absolutely ok with not being a world power.