| A comparison of GDP per capita per hour worked: * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_GDP_(PPP)... Many EU countries are with-in 80-90% of the US by this measure. Also, the US, nationally- / federally-speaking, has no mandatory annual leave; countries in the EU have many days, and people tend take them: * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_minimum_annual_leave_b... Further, using OECD data on labour productivity, the US is down the list, so it seems that when Europeans are working, they get more done: > GDP per hour worked is a measure of labour productivity. It measures how efficiently labour input is combined with other factors of production and used in the production process. * https://data.oecd.org/lprdty/gdp-per-hour-worked.htm And let's not forget that these per capita numbers are averages: * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_income_eq... And from the article: > I’m simply making the modest — yet important — argument that Europeans would be more prosperous if the fiscal burden of government wasn’t so onerous. That does not necessarily follow. Given that in capitalism the 'excess' value created goes to Capital and not Labour, it is debatable whether Joe the Plumber or Jacques the Baker would see more money in their pockets. |