Working in Germany.

The companies I've worked for offer neither of these payments, so you're getting 12 salaries. Of course my exposure is limited to tech companies and small one at that, but for me these 13th or 14th salaries are unavailable, that is only present in big corporations or interestingly for non-academic jobs (i.e. metal work shops I know do pay these, so do some construction companies). IT? Nope.

I think that this style of salary is getting less common in Germany. My work in Germany also doesn't offer the 13th or 14th salaries. Someone else mentioned that these extra payments just means that you annual salary gets divided by 13 or 14 rather than 12, so the total annual payment is the same.

It seems that in most of Europe, blue-collar trade unions have traditionally been very strong so have been able to negotiate all kinds of niceties. White-collar, not so much.

The same is true in Spain (in 90% of the jobs). Of course, that means that you'll get less each month to make the same amount at the end of the year, but it is convenient.

I think the key feature of "paid paid vacation" is that the money can only be spent on a vacation, use it or lose it. So you can't save money by not going on vacation.

Does austrian vacation bonus pay have to be spent on a vacation?

It sounds like you can spend it, or save it, however you like, but you have to use the vacation days

The same thing is common here in The Netherlands. Also, 20 days of paid holidays (excluding weekends) are mandatory, although some employers offer more. IIRC I have ~37 days of paid leave (excluding weekends), but I am not exactly sure since I never completely use it :). We also get extra days off for e.g. moving or marrying. Most of my colleagues completely disconnect during holidays (no work-related e-mail, phone calls, etc.).

I think the idea of restricting the spending of holiday money to holidays only is difficult to execute in most organisations.

I am not totally sure if this is true or not, but somebody from the Netherlands was telling me you can roll over your paid holiday allocation year on year?

In France, Germany and Denmark (where I have been employed) you can do this for something like 10 to 20 days (usually 10 days). But sometimes, you can do this but some of them need to be taken within 3 months of the next "holiday" year (the holiday year starts usually 1st of April).

It means for example, that with the about 11 holidays + WE + 30 paid holidays + 10 days from the year before, you can get a year with 51 days "unconnected".

I don't know what the general rule is here. My employer allows my to save a certain number of vacation hours for the next year. However, these leftovers can only be used the next year. In other words, you cannot save hours multiple years, and then take a year of ;).

Only a limited number of days. Currently, 6 days, I think.

In Netherlands they hold back part of your salary each month then give it to you in one big chunk for Holiday each June (or maybe each June and December).

but thats shrinking. more often you'll see the 13th split up 50% for june and 50% for december.