UK citizens take all of their allotted vacation time, according to a recently released report on the vacation habits of various nationalities that was conducted by Expedia, an online travel agency.
The 2012 Vacation Deprivation study, reporting on vacation habits across continents, says that Asian workers still remain the most vacation deprived, while European workers often take all of their paid leave.
The 2012 study features 22 countries in total. Japanese workers are granted around 13 days off each year on average, but take only 5. South Koreans take 7 out of possible 10 vacation days, while American and Mexican workers take 10 days of vacation out of 12 and 14 possible days, respectively.
Asian workers often take the fewest days off in a year and work the longest weeks. Korean, Singaporean and Taiwanese workers often work around 44 hours a week, while Americans work 40 hours.
Europeans workers believe that taking a vacation is a duty, rather than a perk. Most European workers make use of the full 25 to 30 days of vacation time offered to them every year, other than scheduled holidays.
People in France and Spain take around 30 days off, just like workers in Brazil. Germans take 28 of 30 vacation days available to them, while British, Norwegian and Swedish workers take all their vacation days off in a year.
John Morrey, the general manager of Expedia, said, ‘We conduct this study each year and I am consistently surprised to see how differently each nation treats vacation time. Studies consistently show that an ideal work-life balance leads to happier and more productive employees.
Your vacation days are not a gift, not a luxury. They’re yours to use. So this year, instead of letting those days quietly expire, take that time and connect with the world outside of your office.’
