According to a survey by Expedia comparing annual leave utilization rates across countries and regions in 2023, Japan ranked last at 63%. Expedia is the world’s largest online travel company, headquartered in the United States. Furthermore, according to the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare’s 2025 Comprehensive Survey on Working Conditions, the annual leave utilization rate rose from 40-50% in 2021 to 66.9% in 2024, but this is still insufficient. Japanese workers have the right to choose their vacation time and can take leave whenever they like. However, this is still low internationally. Looking at the situation in other countries, Germany has a law that mandates six weeks of paid leave. France is even further ahead, requiring companies to designate an annual leave calendar that vacation days are predetermined. In the EU, there are systems in place, such as annual leave calendars, that companies are responsible for ensuring employees take their annual leave. By ensuring that employees take their annual leave, a system is in place to prevent the problem of unused leave seen in Japan.
More and more companies are considering leisure and vacation time from the perspective of brushing up knowledge, skills, and hobbies. It could be said that we have entered an era that brushing up knowledge, skills, and hobbies is always required. Brushing up requires both time allocation and efficiency. Regarding time allocation, there is a three-part method. The total time in a year is 8760 hours (24 hours x 365 days). For working people, the three-part method seems to apply: physiological time such as sleep is 8 hours (total 2920 hours), working time is 8 hours (8 hours x 365 days ÷ 7 x (7 days – 2 days) total 2080 hours), and leisure time is 3750 hours. It is said that 1000 hours are needed to develop one skill. Individuals can dedicate these 3750 hours to brushing up their knowledge, skills, and hobbies. However, the reality is that many people in Japan use this leisure time not for brushing, but for overtime work, housework, and childcare. It seems that both the government and companies are increasingly required to create systems that support individual skill development.
Forward-thinking companies have solved the problems of improving productivity and utilizing annual leave. However, there are companies in Japan that cannot solve these problems. Annual leave is intended to refresh and increase work motivation and efficiency. While it should be possible to take time off whenever one wants, Japanese work culture has psychological and physical barriers that prevent people from taking time off when they want. There is also a distorted structure that annual leave is used not for refreshment, but for personal illness or family care. In countries like France, there are systems in place that if an employee takes special leave, their wages for a certain period are guaranteed through social insurance and the company’s contribution. These systems make it easier for employees to take time off with peace of mind. It has been found that workplaces that it is easy to take leave tend to have higher productivity. Companies need ingenuity and wisdom to create workplaces that it is easy to take time off.
