28 May 2006, 23:29 CST
Dear Mr. Harper,
There's been talk in the News lately that we Canadians are vacation deprived. I would agree. In 2004, the average Canadian worked 1,751 hours, about 43 work days more than the Dutch, Germans, French and Danes. Last year, while living in Holland I received 5 weeks paid vacation. This was for an entry level telephone tech support position.
Between 1980 and 2000 European countries added six vacation days or statutory holidays on average, while Canada dropped a day; yet the Euro is still strong than our Dollar.
Working less hours could even lead to increased productivity. The Irish work 6% fewer hours on average than Canadians, yet their economic output per person beats ours by 14%.
The last time Canadian workers received a large cut in work hours was 50 years ago. This was when we dropped a day from our then 6 day work-week. At the time, the business community warned that this cut would leave our economy in ruins. It did not.
Have you given any thought to increasing the labour code's minimum mandate for vacation days? I recommend 20 days, the current vacation mandate of the European Union.
Kind Regards.
28 May 2006, 23:29 GMT-0500
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