8 ms·

That's just scary. It definitely shows how much culture can change/warp our ideas about existence. Although that few days off probably is a significant factor i

That's just scary. It definitely shows how much culture can change/warp our ideas about existence. Although that few days off probably is a significant factor in heightened Japanese suicide rates.

brianwawok 11y ago
I am not sure the days off to hours per week ratio for a sane life.. I.e. I hear 12 days off and I shrug. I hear 18 hour workdays and never seeing your family and my jaw drops. I think if I worked 20h weeks, 0 days off would be okay. You never get THAT burned out over a week that the weekend can't cure you. But if I worked 80 hour weeks, I would need 30 days off per year to stay long term sane.
- artifaxx 11y ago
  Of course, that makes perfect sense. It is the number of days off being so low combined with things like this: http://money.cnn.com/2015/03/09/news/japan-work-salaryman/ http://money.cnn.com/2015/03/09/news/japan-work-salaryman/ that make me truly concerned. The combination of hours and lack of days off surely takes a toll on mental health and productivity.
- droidist2 11y ago
  I'd rather have shorter weeks and zero days off, but that just might be my personality. I hate the idea that once in a while I'll get a vacation that I'll enjoy half of and spend the last half dreading going back.
  - ljf 11y ago
    Sounds like you need a new job? I can honestly say that I'm usually excited and energised after a holiday and ready to get back to work. Sure there is part of me that would like to stay on a beach or with my family for ever, but equally there is a large part of me that enjoys solving the problems I solve at work and the people I work with. I definitely felt that dread in the past though, but don't think that is how it has to be. There are great roles out there!
bane 11y ago
Mind blowing (but not surprising) is how low Japan (and South Korea) ranks in terms of worker productivity. IIR, if South Koreans worked at a similar productivity as Norwegians, they could take half the week off with no effects at all on GDP. Japan is only slightly better. In other words, quite a bit of those long work hours are absolutely useless.
- pedrosorio 11y ago
  Norway is perhaps not the best country for comparison. If South Koreans could get 22% of their GDP and 67% of their exports from the Oil & Gas sector that would help their productivity too. http://ec.europa.eu/trade/policy/countries-and-regions/countries/norway/ http://ec.europa.eu/trade/policy/countries-and-regions/count...
- rahimnathwani 11y ago
  This is overly-simplistic, and misses three key points: 1) Labour productivity is measured as the _average_ output per worker, i.e. total output divided by total number of workers. It does not measure the _marginal_ output of an additional worker (i.e. the derivative of output with respect to number of workers). 2) Labour is not the only factor of production. There is also land, financial capital, technology, etc. 3) Haircuts in Norway cost more than haircuts in South Korea. Is a South Korean barber less productive than a Norwegian one?
  - nightcracker 11y ago
    So if I understand correctly we should compare: 1. Median household income (which should mostly be wages and not land, financial capital, technology). 2. Divided by purchasing power parity (to normalize for different prices in the country). 3. Divided by average hours worked per week for households with median income. This is however assuming that if an employee gets paid X (in purchasing power parity) for their work, then their generated value is some linear constant of X. I don't know how to compensate for the scenario where this is false.
    - hueving 11y ago
sdrothrock 11y ago
I wonder. Japan also has 16 national holidays in comparison with (for example) the US's 11.
- WildUtah 11y ago
  The importance of that really depends on who observes holidays. There is no legal incentive for US employers to observe any. I don't know where your eleven come from, but that sounds like the Federal Government's number for its employees. Private employers typically observe 4-8, including Christmas.
  - omegaham 11y ago
    Can confirm, get seven holidays. On the bright side, I'm a shift worker, so I get to take holidays whenever I want, no questions asked. It's bundled in with my PTO, except it doesn't roll over if I don't use it. As a result, your first seven days of PTO are "holidays."

That's just scary. It definitely shows how much culture can change/warp our ideas about existence. Although that few days off probably is a significant factor in heightened Japanese suicide rates.

brianwawok 11y ago

I am not sure the days off to hours per week ratio for a sane life.. I.e. I hear 12 days off and I shrug. I hear 18 hour workdays and never seeing your family and my jaw drops. I think if I worked 20h weeks, 0 days off would be okay. You never get THAT burned out over a week that the weekend can't cure you. But if I worked 80 hour weeks, I would need 30 days off per year to stay long term sane.

artifaxx 11y ago
Of course, that makes perfect sense. It is the number of days off being so low combined with things like this: http://money.cnn.com/2015/03/09/news/japan-work-salaryman/ http://money.cnn.com/2015/03/09/news/japan-work-salaryman/ that make me truly concerned. The combination of hours and lack of days off surely takes a toll on mental health and productivity.
droidist2 11y ago
I'd rather have shorter weeks and zero days off, but that just might be my personality. I hate the idea that once in a while I'll get a vacation that I'll enjoy half of and spend the last half dreading going back.
- ljf 11y ago
  Sounds like you need a new job? I can honestly say that I'm usually excited and energised after a holiday and ready to get back to work. Sure there is part of me that would like to stay on a beach or with my family for ever, but equally there is a large part of me that enjoys solving the problems I solve at work and the people I work with. I definitely felt that dread in the past though, but don't think that is how it has to be. There are great roles out there!

bane 11y ago

Mind blowing (but not surprising) is how low Japan (and South Korea) ranks in terms of worker productivity. IIR, if South Koreans worked at a similar productivity as Norwegians, they could take half the week off with no effects at all on GDP. Japan is only slightly better. In other words, quite a bit of those long work hours are absolutely useless.

pedrosorio 11y ago
Norway is perhaps not the best country for comparison. If South Koreans could get 22% of their GDP and 67% of their exports from the Oil & Gas sector that would help their productivity too. http://ec.europa.eu/trade/policy/countries-and-regions/countries/norway/ http://ec.europa.eu/trade/policy/countries-and-regions/count...
rahimnathwani 11y ago
This is overly-simplistic, and misses three key points: 1) Labour productivity is measured as the _average_ output per worker, i.e. total output divided by total number of workers. It does not measure the _marginal_ output of an additional worker (i.e. the derivative of output with respect to number of workers). 2) Labour is not the only factor of production. There is also land, financial capital, technology, etc. 3) Haircuts in Norway cost more than haircuts in South Korea. Is a South Korean barber less productive than a Norwegian one?
- nightcracker 11y ago
  So if I understand correctly we should compare: 1. Median household income (which should mostly be wages and not land, financial capital, technology). 2. Divided by purchasing power parity (to normalize for different prices in the country). 3. Divided by average hours worked per week for households with median income. This is however assuming that if an employee gets paid X (in purchasing power parity) for their work, then their generated value is some linear constant of X. I don't know how to compensate for the scenario where this is false.
  - hueving 11y ago

sdrothrock 11y ago

I wonder. Japan also has 16 national holidays in comparison with (for example) the US's 11.

WildUtah 11y ago
The importance of that really depends on who observes holidays. There is no legal incentive for US employers to observe any. I don't know where your eleven come from, but that sounds like the Federal Government's number for its employees. Private employers typically observe 4-8, including Christmas.
- omegaham 11y ago
  Can confirm, get seven holidays. On the bright side, I'm a shift worker, so I get to take holidays whenever I want, no questions asked. It's bundled in with my PTO, except it doesn't roll over if I don't use it. As a result, your first seven days of PTO are "holidays."