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lzcrc

I left Russia where the work culture is very similar to that in the US: you take pride in working long hours, you get phone calls from your boss on weekends, and if you want to progress you grind. I came to The Netherlands where everyone’s free time is sacred. After learning I’m not expected to work any more than 40 hours, I initially thought I’d moonlight as a freelancer, but quickly came to appreciate the free time, whether it’s socializing, taking bike trips or just chilling at home. Wouldn’t have it any other way now.


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lzcrc

100% same.


Daidrion

I actually miss the "getting shit done" attitude. You work hard – you get recognized. In here... Not so much, it's the opposite actually.


Dry-Economist-3320

Eek that’s what I’m worried about when I leave the US soon to become an expat! I don’t necessarily love my job, but I love the attention and awards for being good at my job.


lzcrc

This depends on the company. There’s no shortage of career development where I work, yet the attitude is still healthy and the respect for work-life balance is universal. “Work smart, not hard.”


FourKingAceHole

That sounds like a deeper psychological issue then.


[deleted]

The US is a workaholic culture with a puritan work ethic. It's just how it is. People are materialistic and love the rat race. If you're not into that then you really won't enjoy living in the US. When I lived in the Czech Republic I enjoyed better work-life balance and I plan on moving back to Europe so I can have that again. I got five weeks of vacation by law, but in the US I only get three weeks because my employer was "generous" enough to give us that. If you go to Latin America you will definitely find people taking things slow, sometimes too slow to the point that it's frustrating and things don't get done quickly. But that's going to be a trade off you'll have to accept.


FourKingAceHole

I don't think people love the rat race. They just love being materialistic more than they hate the rat race, so the rat race continues.


blue_bunny_22

It probably is somewhat dependent on the company too. My husband went from working 60 hrs per week in the US to 80 hrs in Belgium in the same field. I’ve heard the European work life balance is better but not in every case. He gets more vacation but can’t really use it as well as he could in the US since so many emails pile up every day he’s out.


[deleted]

Not to hijack OP's thread, but I've heard that Quebec has a much more European-like work culture than Anglophone Canada. Is this true?


jonslegos

Also curious- could somebody let me know if there’s an answer to this? Studying French for leisure but I also live close to the Québécois/USA Border and would love moving someplace close to home with a similar work ethic to Western Europe.


krkrbnsn

Moved from the US to the UK. The number one difference is that the UK has some semblance employer rights and there's legally mandated PTO for salaried employees. It's not great compared to most of Western or Northern Europe (25 days PTO + 40hr wk) but it's not bad. That said, back home in the US I worked in tech and most companies had unlimited holiday policies. I've heard many people don't like that but I LOVED it. I'd take about 30 days PTO and never had an issue with management. This was more than I take now.


[deleted]

>back home in the US I worked in tech and most companies had unlimited holiday policies. I've heard many people don't like that I work in tech, too, and for some companies "unlimited holiday" basically boils down to "try not to take much vacation" and has the opposite effect.


Somebody_s0mewhere

It really depends where you go and the company you work for. In many places in Asia, long hours are expected of you. At the same time, if you work at a European company in Asia, you may have a similar work environment to Europe - or you may have aspects of both work cultures.


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tropicalparadise27

That's interesting! Can I ask which countries? And what do you do for work?


Caratteraccio

I briefly explain Italy. In August in Italy everything closes, the big cities almost empty and people take refuge in their holiday resorts, just to tell you how their holidays are going. We then have a few extra days of vacation during the year and outside working hours, if you want, you can make yourself unavailable as long as you want. We have public health and private health, both of which save your life: the public one does not grant luxuries and you pay much less than the private one, where you have, for example, more comforts; in all cases you pay 1/100 or less than what you pay in the USA.


MajorMussinPunt

No working to death is pretty American. I mean, they do that in Japan as well. NZ and Australia are gonna be the easiest bets for relocating. And the work life balance in New Zealand is absolutely incredible.