| Copyright (c) 2007 Karen Talavera | | | | are mostly reported for salaried (white |
| | | | collar) workers while the other UNILO data is |
| When two opposing viewpoints about American | | | | from among all workers, a huge proportion of |
| workers were emailed me in the same day this | | | | which are hourly (blue collar). But I suspect |
| week I had to wonder: if Americans are | | | | there's more to it. |
| working so hard, why isn't America working? | | | | |
| | | | As my Mexican in-laws would corroborate, |
| According to a recent article published on | | | | Americans have forgotten how to work to live. |
| popular Web site Alternet, The Vanishing | | | | Instead, we've been conditioned to live to |
| American Vacation ( , compared to people in | | | | work. This breeds an entire society valuing |
| other developed countries, Americans don't | | | | material acquisitions and accomplishments |
| ask for more vacation time, don't take all | | | | over quality of life, direct experience, and |
| the vacation time their employers give them | | | | relationships. This inbalance has clearly and |
| and continue to work while they are on | | | | successfully fueled the capitalist juggernaut |
| vacation. It's common knowledge to most | | | | that is America. Yet we may not only have |
| American workers that they receive far less | | | | sold our souls for a bigger house and the |
| vacation time - in weeks not days - than | | | | latest fashion, we've also become |
| their foreign counterparts. With the average | | | | inefficient. In short, the fruits of our |
| American receiving two weeks vacation time, | | | | labors don't carry the impact they should. |
| not taking it all seems incomprehensible. | | | | |
| Unless of course, you're doing what you love | | | | The principle I remember best from a time |
| so much that it doesn't seem like work and | | | | management class early in my career is |
| therefore you don't need "vacation", in which | | | | proving true in America "Work expands to fill |
| case you're probably self-employed and the | | | | the time available for its completion". With |
| whole concept is mute. (If that's you, | | | | more Americans working overtime than ever |
| welcome to my world. There's much to be said | | | | before it's clear we've lost our efficiency. |
| for the self-directed integrated work/leisure | | | | We work more because we can, but do we work |
| existence! But that's a topic for another | | | | better? It's no longer a matter of working |
| day.) | | | | harder, it's one of working smarter. |
| | | | |
| Simultaneously, Fortune (and countless other | | | | The Vanishing Vacation article sums up the |
| American business publications) tell us | | | | facts well, "Our mythology claims the work |
| American workers can't compete globally | | | | ethic makes America great, but does it? We |
| unless they work harder. (See "Are Americans | | | | have the highest productivity in the world |
| Too Lazy?" at According to the article, "The | | | | because we work more overtime - 40 percent of |
| surprising report of our relative sloth | | | | Americans work 50 hours a week and some |
| arrives in new research from the United | | | | workweeks typically run 60 to 70 hours. |
| Nation's International Labor Organization | | | | Workers in France, Ireland, Norway and |
| (UNILO) , which looks at working hours around | | | | Holland are more productive than American |
| the world. When it comes to what we might | | | | workers; Germany and Britain lag slightly |
| call hard work, meaning the proportion of | | | | behind, and all of them have more vacation |
| workers who put in more than 48 hours a week, | | | | time than we do." |
| America is near the bottom of the heap. About | | | | |
| 18% of our employed people work that much. | | | | Personally, I'd like to see the whole lexicon |
| That's a higher proportion than in a few | | | | of work, even the word itself, kicked to the |
| other developed countries like Norway, the | | | | curb. Because the truth is when a person, a |
| Netherlands, and even Japan. But it's | | | | culture, or even a country is passionate and |
| actually lower than in Switzerland and | | | | inspired about what it does, it's not "work" |
| Britain, and way lower than in developing | | | | at all, it's doing what you love and believe |
| countries like Mexico and Thailand. It's | | | | in. It's doing what is necessary and required |
| drastically lower than in what may be the | | | | without wastefully efforting in ways that |
| world's two hardest-working countries, South | | | | don't add value to the overall objective. |
| Korea and Peru, where the proportions are | | | | It's balancing periods of intense activity |
| about 50%. " | | | | with periods of relaxation and replenishment, |
| | | | which make intensity of purpose possible. |
| So with the average Brit worker receiving 20 | | | | Most of all it is being mindful and |
| or more days off a year (in France it's a | | | | intentional of the big picture, which is to |
| government-mandated 30), are they really | | | | live first, then work. None of which seems to |
| working more in total, or simply just logging | | | | have taken root in the modern American |
| more hours per week? Yes, an obvious | | | | psyche. |
| disconnect here may be that vacation stats | | | | |