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work life balance usa

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When people talk about the “Siesta Culture” of the Mediterranean, where offices close in the late afternoon so everyone can take a nap, do you think it’s real? Or what about the charming idea that Parisians enjoy a glass of wine on their lunch break. How common is that? Narrowing down the exact number of individuals in other countries who enjoy a glass of wine and snooze at 3pm on a workday is a bit difficult to do, but there is a reason that those endearing stereotypes exist for other places, and not for America.

Like with any cliché or myth that travels far and wide, there is a little truth behind it. And the truth is that other countries tend to enjoy a bit more work-life balance than America. Without getting too into the weeds about politics, some of our workaholic culture could be caused by pressure to uphold the idea that America has the greatest economy in the world. But don’t forget that that reputation doesn’t rely solely on your labor. Your well-being matters, too. On that note, here are statistics that show that American work-life balance is out of whack.

work life balance usa

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You can work as long as you want

It may be normal to hear of a friend working an 80-hour workweek. Your lawyer friend takes on a big case and doesn’t sleep for a month. You are getting paid a lot of overtime but that also means you’re working a lot of overtime. That, however, is really only “normal” for America, as we’re the only industrialized country that has no limit on how many hours someone can work in a week.

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