Just over half of U.S. workers would be willing to take a 20 percent pay cut in exchange for a better quality of life, a recent survey found.
最近的一项调查发现，略多于一半的美国工人愿意减薪 20%，以换取更好的生活质量。
Lynn Bufka is a clinical psychologist with ties to the American Psychological Association in Washington, D.C. “I do think people are really struggling figuring out what work-life balance is,” she said. “And recognizing, certainly in parts of the U.S., that we have a drive to work and perform and succeed. And increasingly, we're realizing this isn't good for us.”
林恩·布夫卡 (Lynn Bufka) 是一位临床心理学家，与华盛顿特区的美国心理学会有联系。“我确实认为人们确实很难弄清楚什么是工作与生活的平衡，”她说。 “并且认识到，当然在美国部分地区，我们有工作、表现和成功的动力。而且我们越来越意识到这对我们不利。”
Younger adults are even more in favor of giving up money for what they consider a better life, the survey found. Sixty percent of millennials, people aged 27 to 42, said they would accept less money for a better work-life balance. Fifty-six percent of Generation Z adults, people aged 18 up to 26, said the same thing.
调查发现，年轻人更愿意为了他们认为更好的生活而放弃金钱。 60% 的千禧一代（27 岁至 42 岁）表示，为了更好地平衡工作与生活，他们愿意接受更少的钱。 56% 的 Z 世代成年人（18 岁至 26 岁）也表达了同样的看法。
“These results don't surprise me,” Julia Toothacre told VOA in an email. She is a job advisor at ResumeBuilder.com. “The younger generations have been very vocal about the need for balance in their life. It's important to note that it doesn't mean they are less ambitious . It just means they are looking for flexibility , and they aren't willing to sacrifice their health the way other generations have.”
“这些结果并不让我感到惊讶，”朱莉娅·图瑟克在一封电子邮件中告诉美国之音。她是 ResumeBuilder.com 的就业顾问。 “年轻一代一直非常直言不讳地表达了生活平衡的需要。值得注意的是，这并不意味着他们没有那么雄心勃勃。这只是意味着他们正在寻求灵活性，并且他们不愿意像其他几代人那样牺牲自己的健康。”
When it comes to older adults, 45 percent of Generation X, people aged 43 to 59, would take the 20 percent pay cut to get a better work-life balance. But only 33 percent of Baby Boomers, those aged 60 to 78, would do the same.
对于老年人来说，45% 的 X 一代（43 岁至 59 岁）愿意接受 20% 的减薪，以获得更好的工作与生活平衡。但只有 33% 的婴儿潮一代（60 岁至 78 岁）会这样做。
It is something that Toothacre has experienced in her work. She said many of her clients want some flexibility for life events and things like doctor’s visits.
这是Toothacre 在她的工作中经历过的事情。她说，她的许多客户希望在生活事件和看医生等事情上有一定的灵活性。
“Work-life balance is very important to my clients. Most of my clients come to me because they aren't happy in their current career, or they are looking for a more balanced and flexible career path,” she said.
“工作与生活的平衡对我的客户来说非常重要。我的大多数客户来找我是因为他们对当前的职业不满意，或者他们正在寻找更平衡和灵活的职业道路，”她说。
The survey was carried out by Ford Motor Company in August and September 2023 and included 16,086 online interviews with adults in 16 countries, including the United States. Seventy-seven percent of those surveyed say they believed a balanced life was more important than a higher-paying position at work.
该调查由福特汽车公司于 2023 年 8 月和 9 月进行，包括对包括美国在内的 16 个国家的 16,086 名成年人进行的在线采访。 77% 的受访者表示，他们认为平衡的生活比高薪工作更重要。
“If our only definition of ourselves is what we do and our work, we are neglecting …our social sense of self, our spiritual sense of self,” Bufka said.
“如果我们对自己的唯一定义是我们所做的事情和我们的工作，那么我们就忽视了……我们的社会自我意识，我们的精神自我意识，”布夫卡说。
There is also a practical side of work-life balance and the willingness to limit time worked in exchange for less money.
工作与生活的平衡也有实际的一面，并且愿意限制工作时间以换取更少的钱。
Bufka said people need time away from work to keep their households operating. If people feel like they do not have enough time, “there's always going to be a tension between the immediate demands of household and family, and work.”
布夫卡说，人们需要离开工作时间来维持家庭运转。如果人们觉得自己没有足够的时间，“家庭和工作的直接需求之间总会存在紧张关系。”