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Afraid to ask the boss for time off during the current economic climate? Or perhaps willing to take one, but unable to because your employer doesn't offer paid vacation? You must be in the USA which woefully lags behind Japan, the United Kingdom, Canada, Brazil, Germany, France and Italy in average number of paid vacation days earned per year by employees. Even Korea, a nation that many Americans consider hard on their employees, guarantees their employees 25 days paid vacation. Compare that to the US average of 13 days, and one has to wonder what other nations know that Americans don't. Or perhaps the question is what are Americans ignoring that other nations are not?

Research indicates that both employers and employees benefit from employee vacations. A 2007 survey of American employees revealed that over 1/3rd feel better about their job, and more productive, after taking a vacation. This data seems to be supported by the fact that employers surveyed reported that their top performing and most successful employees are often the same employees who routinely take vacation leave.

The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) encourages a balance between work and family or personal life. This results in lower job stress, and can have a direct influence on worker safety and health. Vacations help maintain that balance by allowing employees the opportunity to reconnect with family and friends. In fact, research indicates that vacations can actually lower the risk of employee death, as well as improve job performance by providing certain health benefits.

The State University of New York at Oswego published a study in 2000 that found that taking regular vacations lowers the mortality-risk of men between the ages of 35 and 57 by almost 20%. A similar report from the Framingham Heart Study revealed that frequent vacations lower the risk of death among women age 45 to 64 by 52%.

In regards to safety issues, in 2006 Air New Zealand studying the effect of vacation on things such as sleep, the brain, the eye, the heart, and overall muscles reveled that travelers got three times more deep sleep after a vacation, and showed a 25% average improvement in reaction time of the brain, eye, and muscles.

Employers who encourage employee vacation time also benefit from improved employee productivity and creativity. A study conducted in 2007 revealed that over 1/3rd of Americans who take vacation report feeling better about their job, and more

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