Businessman working on line or searching travel destinations with goggles needing vacations at office

Americans get, and take, less vacation than many other countries

If you needed a helpful reminder to book your vacation… this is it

6/24/24 12:29PM

Workaholics anonymous

Gerri Kellman, General Counsel and erstwhile CEO at Waystar Royco in Succession, once characterized employees at top European rivals as “soft… sick on vacation mania” — compared to American workers, she might have been onto something.

According to the 24th installment of the annual Vacation Deprivation Report, carried out by Harris Research Partners and commissioned by Expedia (yes, the travel company), US employees are allotted 12 vacation days each year on average… and only take 11 of them. Of the countries surveyed, America comes last on the average number of vacation days allotted and the average number of vacation days taken, and, for the most part, it’s not even close.

Aside from Mexico, where workers clock more hours than any other OECD nation, and Japan, where employees didn’t use 7 of their 19 allotted days, most other countries make the US look like a nation of workaholics.

Per the report, workers in Hong Kong were happiest to get stuck into their PTO pot, typically not leaving any of their average 26 vacation days unused. Meanwhile, Europeans were doing their utmost to prove Kellman’s maxim, with France, Germany, and the UK all granted at least 27 days of vacation.

Tom Jones

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The UAE’s OPEC exit will hit the group in the barrels

After just shy of 60 years in OPEC, its membership even predating its status as a nation-state, the United Arab Emirates yesterday announced its shocking departure from the oil production group, effective May 1, as the knock-on effects of the Iran war continue to play out across the Middle East and the energy landscape.

For context, the UAE produces the third-highest amount of oil in the group, per April data and OPEC’s latest set of annual statistics.

According to the cartel’s 2025 Annual Statistical Bulletin, the OPEC group was collectively exporting some 19 million barrels of crude oil a day last year, with the United Arab Emirates accounting for some 14% of that daily output.

UAExit means UAExit

The nation, whose energy minister told Reuters yesterday that the decision was taken “after a careful look at current and future policies related to level of production” and wasn’t made following discussions with any other country, made up a healthy share of the group’s total confirmed crude oil reserves, as well.

Of the 12 nations in the core group, which was founded by just five oil superpowers back in September 1960, only two (Iraq and Saudi Arabia) exported more barrels of crude oil daily, pumping out 3.36 million and 6.05 million barrels, respectively, each day to nations around the world.

For its part, the UAE said it will “continue its responsible role by gradually and thoughtfully increasing production, in line with demand and market conditions,” per the official state news agency. Clearly, the nation now wants a little more control of just how much oil it can pump around the world, with the UAE having to eat a large proportion of lost revenues due to its healthy abundance and OPEC restrictions.