Whereas Japanese people can expect roughly 3½ hours of leisure per weekday ─ spent mostly with television, radio, newspapers, or magazines ─ they can expect over 5½ hours of leisure per Sunday (see Table 2). Unlike weekdays, on Sundays there is more of a balance between passive and active pursuits.
Many people jog, play tennis, play golf etc. In Japan, you may play golf on the top of a building, go swimming in a Fitness center or decide to go skiing after work (skiing resorts are never far from big cities, Tokyo included). Japanese people enjoy sports and have plenty of opportunities to try and practice new ones.
Japanese husbands show their love by working hard
Instead, the weekend is considered sacred family time, and it's rare to find Japanese working on a Saturday or a Sunday.
Although the legal recommendation for working hours in Japan is 40 hours per week, historically, many Japanese employers have required their employees to work as much as 80 hours of overtime per month.
Overtime Work in Japan
The basic working hours are 7 or 8 hours from 9 am to 5 pm or 6 pm, for 5 (or 6) days per week. However, many workers stay in the office until much later, for example until 9 pm to 10 pm.
Employers must grant employees at least one day off per week, or four days off in any four-week period (this is known as "statutory days off"). Sundays or public holidays need not necessarily be days off, and other days may be selected as employees' days off instead by agreement between the employer and employees.
According to a 2021 survey by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), Japanese sleep an average of seven hours and 22 minutes. This is the shortest duration among the member countries and almost an hour less than the OECD average of 8 hours and 24 minutes.
People in the UAE are among the hardest working globally and do the longest hours per week. In the list of 150 countries, Malta tops as a staggering 91 per cent of workers spend 49 or more hours per week, the highest out of all countries studied.
Netherlands. According to government data, at only 29 hours per week, Netherlands has one of the shortest average work weeks in the world. The country ends up having 4-Day work week despite not having official rules for it.
This is probably an already popular notion, but Japanese people have a strong work ethic, which includes punctuality and commitment to work. A lot of employees prioritize work over spending time with their families. They start their day early and spend hours commuting. Working overtime is often a normal practice.
Those extra hours are often unpaid. Today, Japan's corporate culture is driven by the so-called salary man. The salary man is defined by his loyalty to his company and expected to spend his entire career working for the same firm.
Japanese schools have three semesters, separated by vacations. At most schools, summer vacation covers the 40-odd days from July 20 to August 31; winter and spring vacation both last around 10 days, from December 26 to around January 6 and March 25 to around April 5, respectively.
In Japan, you get a minimum of 10 days of paid vacation every year. This minimum is every full-time worker's right, and it's protected by the law. And 10 days is just the starting point — full-time workers are entitled to more vacation days each year they continue to work at a company.
Working Hours in Australia
But on average, the Australian working week is 36 hours, Monday through Friday. For trade occupations, the work day is usually from 7 AM until 3:30 PM. Office working hours are typically from 9 AM until 5 PM.
Under Australian laws, employees work up to 38 hours in a week, or 7.6 hours (7 hours, 36 minutes) each day. These are classed as regular hours of work, and time worked outside of these hours can attract overtime, higher rates of pay (“penalties”), or be counted as time off in lieu to be taken later.
38 hours. the employee's ordinary hours of work in a week.
Nearly four in ten French business leaders admit to working intense, long hours without regular breaks, well above the 25% global average, the survey found. Americans have popularized “hustle culture,” but it's French executives who binge work the most, according to a new survey.
Finland ranks first in the world for Environmental Health (99.3) and Air Quality (98.8). Its Environmental Performance Index (EPI) is 78.9.
Japan. In 2021, the Japanese government's annual economic policy guidelines included a recommendation that companies let employees opt for a four-day workweek and, by extension, a 3-day weekend.
While there are no strict meal times in Japan, most Japanese people will consume meals at approximately the following times: Breakfast: 06:00-07:00. Lunch: 12:00-13:00. Dinner: 18:00-20:00.
In Japanese culture, it's widely believed that everyone has an 'ikigai' – a reason to jump out of bed each morning. Instead of suggesting we slow down to find life's meaning, ikigai involves sticking your finger out, actively flagging down a raison d'être.
TATAMI MATS
It is common practice in Japan to sleep on a very thin mattress over a tatami mat, made of rice straw and woven with soft rush grass. The Japanese believe this practice will help your muscles relax, allowing for a natural alignment of your hips, shoulders and spine.