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Sick Pay Country Comparison

This is a 4-panel 2x2 grid meme that uses the popular reaction template from the 2013 comedy film *We're the Millers* to criticize United States worker sick leave policy, comparing it to policies in multiple European countries. The top introductory text reads 'American money is better invested in billionaires and wars.', setting up the joke that the US prioritizes funding billionaires and military conflicts over worker benefits. Each panel labels a national group: Germans are shocked that their sick pay drops to 70% of full salary after 6 weeks, Italians complain they only get 50-75% salary during sick leave, British people (labeled Englishmen) say they only get £116 a week total sick pay, and the American ends the meme with the punchline 'You guys are getting paid?', highlighting that most Americans receive no paid sick leave at all.
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Dialogue

Germans: After 6 weeks my sick pay drops from 100% to only 70%?!
Italians: You're lucky. I only get 50-75% of my salary during sick leave.
Englishmen: STFU! I only get £116 a week.
American: You guys are getting paid?

Text content

American money is better invested in billionaires and wars.

Overview

This is a 4-panel 2x2 grid meme that uses the popular reaction template from the 2013 comedy film We're the Millers to criticize United States worker sick leave policy, comparing it to policies in multiple European countries. The top introductory text reads 'American money is better invested in billionaires and wars.', setting up the joke that the US prioritizes funding billionaires and military conflicts over worker benefits. Each panel labels a national group: Germans are shocked that their sick pay drops to 70% of full salary after 6 weeks, Italians complain they only get 50-75% salary during sick leave, British people (labeled Englishmen) say they only get £116 a week total sick pay, and the American ends the meme with the punchline 'You guys are getting paid?', highlighting that most Americans receive no paid sick leave at all.

Origin notes

This meme originates from Reddit, with the original title 'Sick Pay..'. It uses an existing 4-panel reaction template sourced from the movie We're the Millers, which is commonly used for this style of increasing-bad-news punchline meme. It circulates online in discussions of worker rights, healthcare, and policy comparison between the US and Europe.

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