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Thirty-one percent of U.S. workers are unhappy with their work-life balance compared to just 18% of European workers, according to a survey by Kickresume.
While both mid-level professionals in the U.S. and Europe are most likely to work overtime daily, the data showed, roughly 40% of U.S. employees work between 41 to 50 hours per week.
At the same time, 60% of U.S. employees never take holidays longer than two weeks, with more than 33% admitting to feeling guilty about taking time off. Nearly 19% said they feel pressured to avoid taking sick days.
Meanwhile, 51% of Europeans are either happy or very happy with their work-life balance.
Other key insights from the study:
- Fifty percent of European employees work between 31 and 40 hours per week.
- Twenty-one percent of European employees claim to never work overtime.
- In 2023, only 9% of Europeans took five or fewer days off, compared to 26% of U.S. workers.
- Almost 30% of European employees took more than 25 vacation days last year, while only 6% of U.S. workers enjoyed that much time off.
- Fifty-nine percent of European employees took more than 21 days of vacation in 2023, while most Americans fell into the lower ranges, with 49% taking 10 days or less.
“With no federal laws guaranteeing paid vacation, Americans are left at the mercy of their employers’ policies. As a result, many Americans have far fewer vacation days available. Plus, the fact that more than 60% of Americans never take long holidays suggests that extended time off is not as culturally or professionally accepted.”
According to Kickresume, nearly half of Europeans (49%) said they don’t feel guilty at all about taking time off, compared to just 32% of Americans.
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