Top 10 Hardest Working Countries of the World

10. Slovenia

 Average Hours Worked: 8.15

Slovenia rounds out the top 10 in terms of average hours worked among the population of OECD member states, possibly as a result of the fact that Slovenians do three hours and 51 minutes of unpaid work each day, 24 minutes more than the OECD average. Slovenia also has the lowest income inequality in OECD and the ninth – lowest relative income poverty rate at 7.8 percent of its population. Slovenia registered a big fall in infant mortality in the last generation and has the second lowest rate in the OECD of 2.1 per 1,000 live births, just after Luxembourg. But the country is rated in the highest third of the OECD for perceived corruption and the lowest third for confidence in national institutions. The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development’s (OECD) released its ‘Society at a Glance’ survey, which investigated the number of hours the population of its member countries spent in both paid and unpaid work (defined as working at home or doing volunteer work), as well as how much time people spent in leisure activities. Lets take a look at which countries are among the world’s busiest and hardest-working nations? 09 more countries after the break...

09. USA

Average Hours Worked: 8.16

According to the OECD the U.S. is only ranked ninth among the hardest working nations. However, at $31,000, the U.S. has the second – highest average household income after taxes and benefits in the OECD, after Luxembourg. But U.S. income is distributed relatively unequally, with both the fourth – highest rate of income inequality and relative poverty (17.3 percent of people are poor compared to an OECD average of 11.1 percent) in the OECD. People in the U.S. have a life expectancy of 77.9 years, lower than the OECD average of 79.3 years, despite having the highest public and private spending on health at 16 percent of GDP, considerably higher than the OECD average of 9 percent.

08. New Zealand

 Average Hours Worked: 8.18

New Zealand may not be famed for its work ethic, but it actually ranks quite high. Unpaid work in New Zealand accounts for 43 percent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), the third highest in the OECD after Australia (46 percent) and Portugal (53 percent). Along with Israel, Iceland and Turkey, New Zealand is one of only four OECD countries with a fertility rate at 2.14 children per woman, sufficient to replace the population in the coming generation.

07. China

 Average Hours Worked: 8.24

The research also included non-OECD member countries such as China, India, South Africa, and Brazil because all are “enhanced engagement countries” — which means OECD members have opted to forge a more structured and coherent partnership with them. The research states that, at less than an hour, both men and women spend very little time on unpaid work in China, in comparison with other countries, particularly in terms of cooking and cleaning. Meanwhile, at 12.29 births per 1,000 of the population, China has one of the lowest birth rates in the world, equal to France and the United Kingdom. The average birth rate stands at 1.54 children per woman.

06. Austria

 Average Hours Worked: 8.29

At nearly 8 1/2 hours of work per day, Austrians have the sixth – highest total time spent working – both paid and unpaid – in the OECD. (The OECD average is 8 hours.) Austria also has the fifth – lowest unemployment rate in the OECD at 4.8 percent – far lower than the average OECD rate of 8.1 percent. Austria has low income inequality and poverty rates with around 7.2 percent of the population on relatively low income or classed as being in poverty in both cases.

05. Estonia

 Average Hours Worked: 8.36

At 8 hours and 36 minutes, Estonians – yes we did say Estonians – have the fifth – highest total work time in the OECD, well over the OECD average of 8 hours and 4 minutes. At 3 hours and 52 minutes, Estonians do the fourth – highest unpaid work time after Turkey, Mexico and Australia, and well above the OECD average of 3 hours and 28 minutes. However, at 14.1 percent , Estonian unemployment is also the third – highest in the OECD, six percentage points above the OECD average of 8.1 percent.

04. Canada

 Average Hours Worked: 8.37

Canadians have the second – highest rate of “positive experiences” in the OECD after Iceland – feeling well-rested, being treated with respect, smiling, doing something interesting, and experiencing enjoyment. At the same time, Canadians have above OECD average “negative experiences,” such as pain, worry, sadness, stress and depression. Canada has the sixth highest proportion of its population foreign-born in the OECD at 20 percent, nearly double the OECD average of 11.7 percent.

03. Portugal

 Average Hours Worked: 8.48

While some people might think that the Portuguese live a relaxed Mediterranean lifestyle, they in fact rank among some of the hardest – working in the world. Men do nearly two hours of unpaid work in Portugal, compared to less than an hour in other OECD countries such as Korea and Japan. The amount of time devoted to unpaid work accounts for up to 53 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) in the country, the highest proportion of all OECD countries, compared to 19 percent of GDP in Korea. Meanwhile, 60 percent of the Portuguese population spends time cooking and cleaning, spending the third largest amount of time on household chores at 110 minutes per day.

02. Japan

 Average Hours Worked: 9

The second-hardest working nation among OECD member countries will probably come as no surprise to anybody. Japan’s adherence to its work ethic is legendary with company employees often competing to stay at work later than their colleagues to achieve promotion in many corporations, where company loyalty is demanded and where a job for life still means life. Japanese people work an average 9 – hour day while the unemployment at 5.3 percent is well below the OECD average of 8.1 percent.

01. Mexico

 Average Hours Worked: 9.54

Recently, Richard Hammond of the TV program “Top Gear” managed to upset the Mexican Ambassador to the U.K. by suggesting that Mexicans were “lazy, feckless, flatulent [and] overweight”. The OECD’s research, however, may go some way to ward redressing the balance by showing that the Mexican people are in fact the hardest working in the world, working a total of nearly 10 hours on average every day. They also have the second-highest level of income inequality and the highest level of relative poverty among OECD countries.

Via : CNBC

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The 10 Most Expensive Vehicles of U.S. Military

01. Northrop Grumman B-2 Spirit

The Northrop Grumman B-2 Spirit, better known as the Stealth Bomber, can launch conventional and nuclear weapons against the most heavily protected enemy lines on earth thanks to its ability to evade radar detection. Originally, it was supposed to be manufactured in a run of 132, but it was so expensive that the initial 1987 order was slashed to 21. The cost of the B-2 program in 1997 was $737 million, or just over $1 billion today. Combined with procurement costs, the B-2 Spirit costs over $2 billion. The craft was first used during the Kosovo War in 1999, and it has been used successfully in Iraq and Afghanistan as well. They have also been used during the 2011 Libyan uprising, according to the BBC.No other country on earth has a larger defense budget than the United States. According to the Department of Defense, its base budget for fiscal year 2010 is over $500 billion, with another $130 billion to bolster the War on Terrorism and another $33 billion in supplemental spending on top of that. And that’s not to mention Homeland Security or nuclear arsenal maintenance.A lot of this money is spent on aircraft, tanks and ships, all of which are top – of – line and represent the furthest advances in military technology. In other words, they cost a lot of money. 09 more after the break...

 02. Bell-Boeing V-22 Osprey

 The Bell-Boeing V-22 Osprey is a versatile aircraft with vertical takeoff and landing capabilities similar to those of a helicopter. However, it’s much faster than any existing chopper and it can fly at speeds as high as those of conventional turboprop airplanes. It was first used for combat in 2007 in Iraq, and the Marine Corps intends to use them in Afghanistan by late 2011. Unfortunately, the Osprey was plagued by a series of accidents during its design and testing phase between 1991 and 2000, and during that period the aircraft was involved in multiple accidents that caused thirty fatalities. Since 2008, the Osprey program has cost $27 billion, and as of 2010, each unit has cost $67 million.

03. USS George H.W. Bush (CVN-77)

 Named for World War II veteran and former President of the United States, George H. W. Bush, the USS George H.W. Bush (CVN-77) is the final Nimitz supercarrier to be produced for the US Navy. It was commissioned in 2001 and built by Northrop Grumman for a cost of $6.2 billion.

The carrier was completed in 2009, and is docked in Virginia. At almost 1,100 feet in length, it’s one of the longest warships in the world. Its top speed is over 30 knots, which it reaches with the help of two onboard nuclear reactors. This power source is capable of keeping the ship running for more than twenty years without once having to refuel.

04. Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II

The F-35 Lightning II was developed as part of a joint program between the US, the UK and other allies known as the Joint Strike Fighter program. It was developed for use in air, ground and reconnaissance missions, it has a wingspan of 35 feet and a length of over 51 feet. Its internal fuel capacity is over 18,000 pounds and it can reach speeds of 1,200 miles per hour.

The F-35 Lightning II is armed with a 4-barreled Gatling cannon and eight types of missiles, and if all else fails, it also has a B61 nuclear bomb. The cost for one aircraft is $122 million. The US plans to purchase over 2,000 units, at a cost of $323 billion. When this deal was cut in 2001, it made Lockheed Martin the recipient of the largest military contract in history.

05. McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet

The F/A-18 Hornet was introduced by McDonnell Douglas and is manufactured by Boeing, who acquired the company in 1997. After making it maiden voyage in 1978, it was introduced in 1983 and since then, it has been used in a variety of capacities. It was used in Operation Desert Storm, and it’s the featured aircraft of the Blue Angels, the U.S. Navy’s Flight Demonstration Squadron. However, its primary functions are reconnaissance and air support.

The Hornet can reach a maximum speed of 1190 miles per hour, and it can climb up to 50,000 feet in a minute. Outside of the US, the fighter is used by the armed forces of such countries as Australia, Canada and Switzerland, and it has appeared in the 1996 science fiction film Independence Day as the aircraft used to defeat the alien menace. A 2006 report by the US Navy estimated that the cost of one unit is $57 million.

06. Boeing EA-18G Growler

The Boeing EA-18G Growler is a carrier-based fighter used for electronic warfare. It can disrupt radar and jam an enemy communication system with electromagnetic radiation and directed-energy weapons. Because of its use as an electronic warfare fighter, it carries no guns, although it carries missiles for self-defense.

The Growler is a modified version of the F/A-18F Super Hornet, and it’s relatively new; it went into production in 2007 and only began operating in September 2009. The aircraft has a wingspan of over 44 feet and a length of over 60 feet. According to the US Navy, it costs $67 million to manufacture a single unit.

07. Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle

 The Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle had its fifteen minutes of fame when 2008 presidential candidate John McCain cited the amphibious assault vehicle as the basis for a costly program that was wasting billions of taxpayer dollars. Developed for the US Marine Corps, it is deployed at sea and transports a full marine rifle squad to shore, then operates on land with the full capabilities of a tank.

The Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle is manufactured by General Dynamics, and the cost for each unit is over $22 million. To date, the program, which is expected to be complete in 2015, has a project cost of $15 billion, $3 billion of which has already been spent. The Bowles-Simpson Commission has recommended that the program be cancelled, and Secretary of Defense Gates said in January 2011 that he believes the program should end.

08. Grumman E-2D Advanced Hawkeye

 The E-2 Hawkeye is an airborne early warning aircraft that dates back to the 1960s. It has been upgraded to the E-2B and E-2C models when advances were made to its radar and communications capabilities, but the most recent model, the E-2D Advanced Hawkeye, is the most sophisticated yet. It features a new radar system that triples the craft’s ability to monitor territory.

The E-2D Advanced Hawkeye, which took its first flight in 2007, costs $232 million to produce. It features a brand new avionics suite, complete with satellite communications capability, and the capability for midair refueling. According to Northrup Grumman, the aircraft began delivery to the US Navy in 2010.

09. Boeing C-17 Globemaster III

 The C17A Globemaster III is a military transport aircraft in operation since 1993. The plane, which can drop over 100 paratroopers into a war zone at one time, has been used to move troops into Iraq and Afghanistan, and has also been used to deliver humanitarian aid and perform medical evacuations.

The price for one unit is $191 million. McDonnell Douglas developed it during the 1980s for strategic and tactical airlift, and it’s used by the militaries of the U . K . and Canada, as well as by NATO. Both the United Arab Emirates and India are planning to use the aircraft as well.

10. Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor

 According to its manufacturer, Lockheed Martin, the F-22 Raptor is the best combat aircraft on earth. While this might seem tantamount to saying your son is brilliant, one look at the aircraft’s capabilities actually bears out the manufacturer’s statement. It can break the sound barrier, it can avoid detection by radar and it can shoot down cruise missiles.

Unfortunately, an Air Force budget document estimated that one unit costs $150 million, with an overall program cost of $65 billion. The high price inspired the Defense Department to call for the program’s end in 2009. The Senate voted to end it in July of that year, and when the military policy bill was signed into law three months later, funding for further production of the F-22 had been cut.

read more at CNBC

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