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<h1>American Workers Let 662 Million Vacation Days Go Unused Last Year</h1>
<p>Average number of years the wealthiest 1 percent of Americans outlive the poorest 1 percent: 10 to 15 <sup><span>1</span></sup></p>&#13;
<p>Amount, in added benefits from Social Security and other social programs, that an affluent American receives from that life expectancy inequality: $130,000</p>&#13;
<p>Percent of 2015 crowdfunding campaigns on GiveFoward, Plumfund, FundRazr, and Red Basket that raised money for personal medical costs: 41 <sup><span>2</span></sup></p>&#13;
<p>Percent of those campaigns that were fully funded: 11</p>&#13;
<p>Average cost of platform and processing fees charged for each $100 donation on GiveForward and FundRazr: $8.20 <sup><span>3</span></sup></p>&#13;
<hr style="width: 50%;" width="50%"><p>Total number of vacation days unused by American employees in 2016: 662 million <sup><span>4</span></sup></p>&#13;
<p>Percent of men who say vacation time is &ldquo;extremely&rdquo; important to them: 49</p>&#13;
<p>Of women: 58</p>&#13;
<p>Percent of men who used all their allotted vacation days: 48</p>&#13;
<p>Of women: 44</p>&#13;
<p>Added income women working full-time would have earned in 2016 had they been paid the same hourly wage as their male counterparts: $42 billion <sup><span>5</span></sup></p>&#13;
<hr style="width: 50%;" width="50%"><p>Number of the five fastest-growing cities in the United States that are in Texas: 4 <sup><span>6</span></sup></p>&#13;
<p>Increase in median cost of a single-family home in Texas between 2010 and 2017: $90,000 <sup><span>7</span></sup></p>&#13;
<p>Change in Texas minimum wage between 2010 and 2017: $0 <sup><span>8</span></sup></p>&#13;
<p>Weekly hours a Texan working at the minimum wage would need to work to afford a two-bedroom rental: 117 <sup><span>9</span></sup></p>&#13;
<p>Number of states in which working 40 hours a week at minimum wage is enough to pay for a two-bedroom rental: 0</p>&#13;
<p>Rank of Texas among states with most workers earning at or below minimum wage: 1 <sup><span>10</span></sup></p>&#13;
<hr style="width: 50%;" width="50%"><p>Tons of plastics that humans have created since large-scale production of the synthetic materials began in the early 1950s: 9.1 billion <sup><span>11</span></sup></p>&#13;
<p>Tons that have already become waste: 6.9 billion</p>&#13;
<p>Percent of plastic waste that has been recycled: 9</p>&#13;
<hr style="width: 50%;" width="50%"><p>Tons of food scraps Californians throw away each year: 6 million <sup><span>12</span></sup></p>&#13;
<p>Number of California landfills that have the potential to emit &ldquo;significant&rdquo; quantities of methane: 370 <sup><span>13</span></sup></p>&#13;
<p>Average factor by which the atmospheric warming potential of methane is greater than that of carbon dioxide: 32 <sup><span>14</span></sup></p>&#13;
<p>Amount to date of California cap-and-trade revenue appropriated for greenhouse gas emission reduction programs: $3.4 billion <sup><span>15</span></sup></p>&#13;
<p>Amount of that revenue allocated to a new food waste prevention program: $5 million <sup><span>16</span></sup></p>&#13;
<hr style="width: 50%;" width="50%"><p><em><span>1. <a href="http://www.nber.org/papers/w23329" target="_self" title="" rel="noopener noreferrer">The National Bureau of Economic Research</a>&nbsp;<br></span><span>2. <a href="https://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/loans/medical-debt-crowdfunding-bankruptcy/" target="_self" title="" rel="noopener noreferrer">Nerd Wallet</a>&nbsp;<br></span><span>3. <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-06-12/america-s-health-care-crisis-is-a-gold-mine-for-crowdfunding" target="_self" title="" rel="noopener noreferrer">Bloomberg<br></a></span><span>4. <a href="http://fortune.com/2017/05/23/vacation-time-americans-unused/?ex_cid=SigDig" target="_self" title="" rel="noopener noreferrer">Fortune<br></a></span><span>5. <a href="https://thetyee.ca/Opinion/2017/03/08/Help-Women-Achieve-Economic-Equality/" target="_self" title="" rel="noopener noreferrer">The Tyee<br></a></span><span>6. <a href="https://www.census.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2017/cb17-81-population-estimates-subcounty.html" target="_self" title="" rel="noopener noreferrer">United States Census Bureau</a>&nbsp;<br></span><span>7. <a href="https://www.zillow.com/tx/home-values/" target="_self" title="" rel="noopener noreferrer">Zillow<br></a></span><span>8. <a href="https://www.minimum-wage.org/texas" target="_self" title="" rel="noopener noreferrer">Minimum-Wage.org<br></a></span><span>9. <a href="http://nlihc.org/oor" target="_self" title="" rel="noopener noreferrer">National Low Income Housing Coalition<br></a></span><span>10. <a href="https://www.bls.gov/opub/reports/minimum-wage/2016/home.htm" target="_self" title="" rel="noopener noreferrer">The Bureau of Labor Statistics</a>&nbsp;<br></span><span>11. <a href="http://advances.sciencemag.org/content/3/7/e1700782" target="_self" title="" rel="noopener noreferrer">Science Advances<br></a></span><span>12. <a href="http://www.calrecycle.ca.gov/NewsRoom/2017/06June/08.htm?utm_content=buffer203ab&amp;utm_medium=social&amp;utm_source=twitter.com&amp;utm_campaign=buffer" target="_self" title="" rel="noopener noreferrer">CalRecycle<br></a></span><span>13. <a href="https://arb.ca.gov/cc/waste/landfillingofwaste.pdf" target="_self" title="" rel="noopener noreferrer">California Air Resources Board<br></a></span><span>14. <a href="https://www.epa.gov/ghgemissions/understanding-global-warming-potentials" target="_self" title="" rel="noopener noreferrer">United States Environmental Protection Agency<br></a></span><span>15. <a href="https://www.arb.ca.gov/cc/capandtrade/auctionproceeds/cci_annual_report_2017.pdf" target="_self" title="" rel="noopener noreferrer">California Climate Investments&rsquo; Annual Report<br></a></span><span>16. <a href="http://www.calrecycle.ca.gov/NewsRoom/2017/06June/08.htm?utm_content=buffer203ab&amp;utm_medium=social&amp;utm_source=twitter.com&amp;utm_campaign=buffer" target="_self" title="" rel="noopener noreferrer">CalRecycle</a></span></em></p>
<p>This article originally appeared in <a href="https://www.yesmagazine.org">Yes! Magazine</a> at <a href="https://www.yesmagazine.org/issue/just-transition/2017/10/17/american-workers-let-662-million-vacation-days-go-unused-last-year">https://www.yesmagazine.org/issue/just-transition/2017/10/17/american-workers-let-662-million-vacation-days-go-unused-last-year</a>.</p><link href="https://www.yesmagazine.org/issue/just-transition/2017/10/17/american-workers-let-662-million-vacation-days-go-unused-last-year" rel="canonical"/><p>Yes! Magazine is a nonprofit, independent media organization dedicated to telling stories of ... . Learn more at <a href="https://www.yesmagazine.org">Yes! Magazine</a></p><img id="republication-tracker-tool-source" src="https://www.yesmagazine.org/?republication-pixel=true&post=15283&ga4=G-74QJNNY44Z" style="width:1px;height:1px;">

American Workers Let 662 Million Vacation Days Go Unused Last Year
Average number of years the wealthiest 1 percent of Americans outlive the poorest 1 percent: 10 to 15 1
Amount, in added benefits from Social Security and other social programs, that an affluent American receives from that life expectancy inequality: $130,000
Percent of 2015 crowdfunding campaigns on GiveFoward, Plumfund, FundRazr, and Red Basket that raised money for personal medical costs: 41 2
Percent of those campaigns that were fully funded: 11
Average cost of platform and processing fees charged for each $100 donation on GiveForward and FundRazr: $8.20 3
Total number of vacation days unused by American employees in 2016: 662 million 4
Percent of men who say vacation time is “extremely” important to them: 49
Of women: 58
Percent of men who used all their allotted vacation days: 48
Of women: 44
Added income women working full-time would have earned in 2016 had they been paid the same hourly wage as their male counterparts: $42 billion 5
Number of the five fastest-growing cities in the United States that are in Texas: 4 6
Increase in median cost of a single-family home in Texas between 2010 and 2017: $90,000 7
Change in Texas minimum wage between 2010 and 2017: $0 8
Weekly hours a Texan working at the minimum wage would need to work to afford a two-bedroom rental: 117 9
Number of states in which working 40 hours a week at minimum wage is enough to pay for a two-bedroom rental: 0
Rank of Texas among states with most workers earning at or below minimum wage: 1 10
Tons of plastics that humans have created since large-scale production of the synthetic materials began in the early 1950s: 9.1 billion 11
Tons that have already become waste: 6.9 billion
Percent of plastic waste that has been recycled: 9
Tons of food scraps Californians throw away each year: 6 million 12
Number of California landfills that have the potential to emit “significant” quantities of methane: 370 13
Average factor by which the atmospheric warming potential of methane is greater than that of carbon dioxide: 32 14
Amount to date of California cap-and-trade revenue appropriated for greenhouse gas emission reduction programs: $3.4 billion 15
Amount of that revenue allocated to a new food waste prevention program: $5 million 16
1. The National Bureau of Economic Research 2. Nerd Wallet 3. Bloomberg4. Fortune5. The Tyee6. United States Census Bureau 7. Zillow8. Minimum-Wage.org9. National Low Income Housing Coalition10. The Bureau of Labor Statistics 11. Science Advances12. CalRecycle13. California Air Resources Board14. United States Environmental Protection Agency15. California Climate Investments’ Annual Report16. CalRecycle