Is it your perception that Americans work hard?

Asked by JLeslie (65439) December 11th, 2016 from iPhone

I was talking to my uncle’s girlfriend, who is from England, but has lived in America over 20 years, about vacations. Then the conversation turned to how she used to get 5 weeks vacation in Europe, and that’s one thing that’s awful here in the US. I completely agreed that vacation from work is overall way too skimpy in the US. Many people get no vacation from work, or have to wait until after a year of employment. I personally don’t even necessarily care if it’s paid, I’m primarily talking about time off.

Five weeks is a lot to me, maybe because I’m American, but I think everyone should get 3–4.

Then, about 20 minutes later we were talking about work ethic, and I said I feel most American work very hard. Often too hard. She wasn’t having it at first. I referred back to her statement about vacation and reminded her most Americans practically all they do is work. Almost everyone I know works a lot of hours, and many work incredibly long hours.

What’s your experience and your perception? Let me know where you live and if you’ve ever lived in America.