The vast majority of American workers will be lucky enough to be paid AND have the opportunity to sleep in four days in a row over the Thanksgiving weekend, according to findings from Bloomberg BNA's annual nationwide survey of holiday practices.  According to the seminal survey of U.S. employers, which has been conducted annually since 1980, a full four in five employers will grant workers Thanksgiving and the following day off with pay.  For a complimentary copy of the report and to learn more about how employers manage the Thanksgiving holiday, visit http://on.bna.com/xz3U306eWWV.  

"A robust economy may be the reason behind so many employers being so generous with time off during the holiday," said Molly Huie, Manager, Surveys and Reports, Bloomberg BNA.   "However, as is typically the case on national holidays, some workers are required to punch the clock, and this year three in ten employers are will require some employees to spend a day at the office." 

Among the survey's other key findings:

Those that work on Thanksgiving will get a little extra stuffing in their wallets.  Over eight in ten organizations (84 percent) that have employees laboring on Thanksgiving will provide some form of extra compensation, including time-and-one-half pay (36 percent), double pay (22 percent) and both extra pay and compensation time (12 percent).

Large employers are four times as likely to require some to work.  Sixty-four percent of large organizations (those with over 1,000 employees) will require some to pull a holiday shift, as compared to only 16 percent of small organizations. 

Employees responsible for public safety, security, maintenance or technology support are most likely to be required to work on Thanksgiving.  Security and public safety workers (16 percent), service and maintenance staff (13 percent), and technicians (10 percent) are most likely to draw holiday shifts. 

Workers in manufacturing are most likely to get four paid days off.  Over nine in ten (91 percent) of manufacturers indicated they will provide a paid holiday to all or most of their employees on Thanksgiving Day and the Friday after, compared with 81 percent of nonbusiness organizations — such as schools, police departments, municipalities and hospitals — and 74 percent of nonmanufacturing companies.

Thanksgiving gifts are not the norm for workers.  Thanksgiving gifts are not the norm, as only 22 percent of employers pay to give their employees gifts or host holiday luncheons or dinners.