Can you figure out why Americans work so
hard? We work longer hours than any other industrial people on the
earth and take shorter vacations.
I would suggest three reasons, one is the rapid growth in the number of one-person businesses and other very small businesses. I discussed this in the previous blogs. Small businesses, like one-person businesses, are very efficient and can provide the opportunity to absorb the passions of the participants. More passion, more work.
The second reason
is the increasing degree of experience with management and the
associated increase in the social content of work. The Baby Boomers
have been in the work-force for nearly 30 years, on average for at
least 15 years. They have become management and they have learned how
to enjoy management. This is symbiotic with the greater social content
of work as opposed to the mechanical and physical content of work. The
more social the content of the work, the greater the potential for a
manager to improve conditions rather than just make it more efficient.
Think about a doctor's office or a law office. Good management can help people work better and enjoy work more; all of which increases productivity in a way that work in a Kinko's or UPS back office couldn't be improved.
The third reason we work harder is discussed at the end of August.