One major difference I noticed between Dutch and U.S. culture is work-life balance. Many Dutch people have a four-day work week with limited hours. Culturally, personal and family life is valued above one’s accomplishments in the workplace.

As a visitor, I noticed this difference just based on when stores and restaurants are open. Many businesses are closed on Mondays and Tuesdays, something that would be unheard of in the US. In the United States, we value the convenience of stores always being open, rather than the wellbeing of the people working there. Whereas the Netherlands chooses to deal with more inconvenient hours for the sake of promoting work-life balance for everyone.

I also heard about this difference from alumni at our Pitt dinner. An alumnus who works in IT confirmed that he only works three or four days a week, much of which is from home. He also mentioned that work in the Netherlands focuses on collaboration and making sure everyone’s ideas are heard. In the US, we are more focused on individuals accomplishing tasks quickly, rather than working together to improve the outcome.

I think that the US is starting to accept the ideas of limited working hours and more flexibility; however, we are still behind the Netherlands and other European countries when it comes to adopting these principles. Lots of change would need to happen politically and socially to truly implement work-life balance in the US. I think that people’s mental and physical health would benefit a lot, not to mention the social benefits that come with spending more time with family and friends. Something we can learn from the Dutch is that life is more than work.