Work is usually prioritized higher than life in America and often overshadows an employee’s personal needs. But, since the global pandemic, American work culture is experiencing a shift. For some inspiration, let’s look at the different work-life balance methods globally.
Australia
Recently released data showed that 13% of Australians work more than 50 hours a week compared to the average 11% in the United States of America. Although federal law mandates a four-week vacation for all employees, they are also entitled to an 18-week paid parental leave.
Paternal leave can be extended to a year without pay and health insurance benefits for all residents. The men and women of Australia start work early and work for longer hours and have a difficult work-life balance. In a survey conducted by the Australian government, almost 2/3 of the participants regularly worked from home. The reason is the difficulty in finding appropriate child care facilities.
Canada
Canadian employees want to go for more flexible working hours and a need for limiting the stress and workload. It seems that Canadians are giving more importance to work-life balance than salary.
To them, it is important that the organization they work for respect their work-life balance. Companies wanting to attract and retain employees must acknowledge the fact that work and life are different entities, but both are intertwined, as one always affects the other.
Remote workers are more focused on work-life balance. Almost 42% of them prioritize it over salaries, and it has now become a new way of life for most Canadian employees.
Two weeks of paid leave is allowed in all provinces of Canada, except for the Saskatchewan Province, which gives three weeks. The parental leave is an unpaid leave of 63 weeks, and maternity leave can be given for up to 17 weeks, but without pay.
Netherlands
Netherland is one of those countries that best manage the work-life balance in the best manner. With a score of 9.5 out of 10 on the work-life balance scale, only 0.4% of people in the Netherlands work long hours (that is 50+ hours in a week). Working overtime is not common, and the standard work time consists of 38 hours.
Part-time work is readily available, especially for parents with young kids. The childcare system of the Dutch is greatly supportive of family life. They go as far as offering free daycare services for 10 hours daily and five days a week, maternity leaves, and paid parental leaves, help create a better work-life balance and also promote equality between the men and the women employees.
Russia
Work-life balance is a major priority in Russia. The percentage of employees who work for more than 50 hours per week is as less as 0.2%. Russia forbids more than four hours of overtime for two consecutive days, and it is required to double the pay after two hours of overtime. Also, all employees are entitled to a paid vacation of 28 days per year.
Scandinavia
Employees in Denmark, Norway, and Sweden enjoy a five-week mandatory paid vacation every year. The workweek is 40 hours or less of work, which means they work 20% fewer hours than Americans without their productivity suffering, and they continue to achieve a higher annual per capita GDP.
The use of flexible-hours work strategies permits the employees who make adjustments to start their work or to end it by up to 3 hours. The four cities that topped the list of best work-life balance in the world are Scandinavia, Stockholm, Oslo, Copenhagen, and Helsinki.
Conclusion
Countries with the worst work-life balance consist of Colombia, Mexico, Korea, the United States, and South Africa. The percentage of people reportedly working long hours is anywhere between 11% to 25%. It is hard to find the right balance between work and life, but it is extremely vital.
Leisure time and time for families and other commitments are important for a person’s overall physical and mental health. All employers must ensure that they provide the required balance of work and life to their employees to get the most out of them.
