Americans don't get much vacation. Alright, now you can give me an award for pointing out the obvious. I will also be happy to take food items from non-oppressed countries in lieu of shiny ribbons.
Americans get less vacation time compared to other western nations. As that article details, even taking a vacation itself can create stress. We don't take all the time offered and unused vacation time just creates more unearned profit for the employer.No federal mandates or guidelines exist regarding vacation time.This lengthy report details comparisons between the US and other western countries that illustrate that many Americans don't actually get any paid vacation and that ours is pretty thin when we do get it.
Here in the US we just let the market decide which of course is code for: we ain't doing nothing. When you let the market decide, you can safely guess that workers will get squat and executives will get huge bonuses when companies lose money or when gigantic cuts in the work force are made. Since American workers have never actually been offered much in the way of vacation time, it is actually pretty spurious to speculate that we just enjoy being an embodiment of the world wide work ethic.
Inevitably, when business analysts are called upon to explain the differences between American workers and those in other western countries we get the deep and penetrating wisdom we have come to expect from the business pages. American workers like the fact that they have no national day care system nor a comparable one paid for by the corporations for whom they work. American workers just love the fact that they have fewer vacation days than most Europeans because well, what would they do with all that time? We certainly wouldn't want them to have too much time to think and ponder or spend time with families and realize that despite the yammering of radical Christian elites we have a very family unfriendly societal structure.
This blurb just coincidentally quotes a study from a conservative organization that reveals that while workers are vaguely irritated by bosses, they are satisfied by other job aspects including the length of vacation. Even when they finally take a vacation, a significant percentage of people usually in semi-management positions check emails or check in with the office to find out how things are going. Apparently 81 percent of people check work related emails while on vacation. I don't happen to be one of them. I think my institution can survive nicely without me although my only other colleague in a supervisory position who does not check has young children and can barely sleep never mind check emails. I myself just don't care to.
I can certainly appreciate that if you happen to own the business then even during vacation one will be obligated to check in to make sure thing have not imploded. But the fact is we are made to feel guilty about relaxing, it is unproductive, and while I am lounging at the plastic enhanced paradise laden third world resort with lots of happy, smiling people, if I don't watch myself when I get back to the office the guy/gal who decided to forgo the vacation just might grab my promotion.
On a more practical level, many Americans either cannot afford to really take a vacation even if they receive one.
Our lack of vacation time might also explain why and how we chose our vacations. We have a tendency to want to cram thing in to have "fun" to "live it up" and to have specific memories. You have possibly seen those ads put out by various companies that show just how much you can do on a cruise these days. We select the action packed cruise or the Disneyland/Disney world option because we want something safe, predictable, and value laden. When you have two weeks or less who wants to risk experiencing another culture and having it turn out to be less than stellar?
Whether one has vacation time or not is clearly not at the top of any political agenda, and yet it speaks to quality of life issues that are soft in nature, and still have a direct impact on our lives. Maybe if the average American did have more vacation time they might chose to explore other nations and cultures and have a slightly less insular world view. We might learn a little respect and appreciation instead of feeling threatened by ideas and languages that are different. We might realize the extent to which our lifestyle dies impact the universe. We might gain a bit more empathy for the world. We might have more time to reflect on our values and to realize that hyper-capitalism benefits such a small minority.
On a personal note, we are still trying what to do with our vacation in October on a budget. We have about a week to ten days and we have toyed with many ideas and nothing seems to be grabbing us so suggestions are welcome.