Be glad you work in Singapore...

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development reports that South Korea is the hardest working nation in the world, a country where 12+ hours, 6 or more days per work are common and management level employees get 3 days of annual vacation! South Korean log an estimated 2357 hours per year, Greece is the second hardest working country at about 2052. The country working the least hours with the most leisure time are the Netherlands with nearly 1000 more hours of free time than South Koreans.

One of the key factors in the disparity between countries and their number of hours worked is cultural. Koreans are proud to be seen working as hard as they do, are discouraged from speaking up against authority and identify themselves strongly with the work they do (often being referred to as "office worker Kim" or "accountant Park" even when not at work). It takes time to change societal norms, but the good news is that current economic conditions and the exploding Asian economies are affecting those harder working countries positively and work hours are gradually being reduced.

Image courtesy of AsiaInfo.org

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