In 2011, 90 percent of wage and salary workers had access to paid or unpaid leave
at their main jobs, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported. Twenty-one
percent of wage and salary workers took paid or unpaid leave during an average week.
Workers who took leave during an average week took an average of 15.6 hours of leave.
Fifty-six percent of wage and salary workers were able to adjust their work schedules
or location instead of taking leave or because they did not have access to leave in
2011. Seven percent of workers made such an adjustment in an average week.
These findings are from a supplementary set of questions asked as part of the 2011
American Time Use Survey (ATUS). The ATUS is a continuous household survey that
provides estimates on how people spend their time. The data on wage and salary
workers' access to leave, use of leave, and ability to adjust their work schedules
were collected as part of the 2011 Leave Module sponsored by the Department of
Labor's Women's Bureau. These data on leave were collected directly from wage and
salary workers. The data thus represent only workers' knowledge on these topics.
Workers sometimes do not know whether they can use leave or adjust their work
schedules or location until they have a need to do so. For more information about
the ATUS Leave Module, see the Technical Note.
Access to paid or unpaid leave in 2011:
--On average, 59 percent of wage and salary workers had access to paid leave.
Seventy-seven percent of wage and salary workers had access to unpaid leave
and an additional 7 percent of workers were unsure whether they had access
to unpaid leave. Ninety percent of workers had access to either paid or
unpaid leave.
--Men and women were about equally likely to have access to paid or unpaid
leave at their main jobs in 2011. Ninety percent of men had access to paid
or unpaid leave compared with 91 percent of women.
--By occupation, workers in management, business, and financial operations
jobs were the most likely to have access to paid leave (77 percent).
--Seventy-six percent of workers in the public sector had access to paid
leave, compared with 57 percent of private-sector workers.
--Among single jobholders, full-time wage and salary workers were more
than 3 times as likely to have access to paid leave than were part-time
workers--71 percent compared with 22 percent.
--Among single jobholders, 83 percent of full-time wage and salary workers
in the highest earnings range had access to paid leave, compared with
50 percent of full-time workers in the lowest earnings range. Each
earnings range represents approximately 25 percent of full-time wage
and salary workers.
--Among wage and salary workers age 25 and over, 72 percent of workers with
a bachelor's degree or higher had access to paid leave, compared with 35
percent of workers with less than a high school diploma.
Use of paid or unpaid leave in 2011:
--Twenty-one percent of wage and salary workers took paid or unpaid leave
during an average week. Workers who took leave during an average week
took an average of 15.6 hours of leave.
--Women were slightly more likely than men to take leave from their jobs
during an average week--23 percent compared with 20 percent.
--In an average week, 6 percent of wage and salary workers reported their
main reason for taking leave was a vacation, 5 percent took leave because
they were ill or needed medical care, and 4 percent took leave mainly to
run errands or for personal reasons.
--Of those wage and salary workers who took leave from their main jobs during
an average week, 57 percent used only paid leave and 40 percent used only
unpaid leave. Three percent of these workers used a combination of paid and
unpaid leave.