I don’t give a flying fuck about being able to shop till I drop on Sundays and late evenings. Sounds like you have some pretty shallow friends. Might be time to kick them to the curb and find new ones.

Your “if you want to work less blah-blah-blah” argument is tiresome and hackneyed. I bet that they told shipyard workers the same in 1950 — “if you don’t want to breathe asbestos, find another job.” Or “if you don’t want to get black lung, find another job.”

I consider working hours and vacation time a health and safety issue. tiredness reduces safety and lowers mental and physical health. In a tight job market like the US, employers will always exploit employees the most they can within the law.

Apparently, Americans only take 50% of their given vacation because they’re afraid of losing their jobs. This is wage theft and a hostile work environment, but no one does a damn thing about it. If time off and working hours were guaranteed by law, then there would be less of an incentive to bully employees into giving up what is rightfully theirs.