of the gains, leaving most people with real incomes that were flat, but with higher material expectations.
As a consequence, they got caught in a “work-spend cycle” (Schor) of debt and longer working hours. Then, too, the new technologies that were supposed to promise the Age of Leisure ended up keeping people leashed to their jobs, even when the work day was over.
In the early 1970s, the average European worked more than the average American. Now, except for the Greeks, they all work less; in the case of the Nordic countries, the Netherlands and Germany, much less. In virtually every other rich country on Earth, employees take policies like paid family leave, sick leave and vacation time for granted. And when everyone is on vacation, entrepreneurs get a chance for a little time off, too.
So since 2002, I’ve been working with others to win similar policies for Americans. Several U.S. states now guarantee family paid leave, and a handful of cities require companies to offer paid sick days. But, except for Puerto Rico, no U.S. jurisdiction now mandates paid vacations for workers. As a consequence, 42 percent of Americans either got or took zero paid vacation days last year. So we’ve got a long way to go to catch up.
Seattle cardiologist Sarah Speck calls stress from overwork “the new tobacco,” and says it’s just as dangerous for our health. As a society, we are overworked and stressed out, and if my friend Steven Hill is right, nearly half of us may be freelance contract employees by 2020, with virtually no benefits at all. We’ve got to begin thinking about how to ensure time off and other benefits for them and for all workers.
John de Graaf is an author, documentary filmmaker and president of Take Back Your Time, an organization fighting overwork and time poverty in America.