At Scientific American: Why your brain needs more downtime. An excerpt:
In contrast to the European Union, which mandates 20 days of paid vacation, the U.S. has no federal laws guaranteeing paid time off, sick leave or even breaks for national holidays. In the Netherlands 26 days of vacation in a given year is typical. In America, Canada, Japan and Hong Kong workers average 10 days off each year. Yet a survey by Harris Interactive found that, at the end of 2012, Americans had an average of nine unused vacation days.
This sounds like BS. Excuse me for seeing political agendas everywhere, but to put this in perspective, imagine Thomas Edison taking a day off when required by government regulation. Driven people may need time to revive themselves but that doesn't necessarily mean a day away from the work they love.
ReplyDeleteLarry,
ReplyDeleteIt's all an individual decision. I think it is a good sign that Americans have unused leave. [I often find vacations far more stressful than work.]
But there are times when doing nothing adds perspective.
Michael
I think that "paid time off" in this country is rapidly becoming a joke. With the ridiculous expectation in many corporate cultures that you are always available via your mobile device, otherwise you are not a "team player," the truth is you are never really "on vacation".
ReplyDeleteCincyCat,
ReplyDeleteMy work and personal time are one big blur both for good and bad but then I'm a partner in a small firm. With some jobs, it can be hard to make a distinction.
Michael