In an interesting move, the French government and business sector have colluded to introduce new laws which will protect approximately 250,000 employees from having their leisure time interrupted. Employees in the digital and consultancy sectors will now no longer have to respond to work-related emails outside of work hours (basically after 6pm). This will help to maintain a policy enforcing a 35-hour work week, introduced in 1999. As it is, studies show that in Europe people tend to enjoy themselves and work less than Americans do, including working less hours per week and working fewer weeks per year. Personally, I think that in a world driven by money, it is nice to see emphasis being placed on living outside the work place. Thoughts?
http://www.theguardian.com/education/2014/apr/09/new-work-life-balance-france-sweden-laws-countries-better-job-hours-work
This article exemplifies the explicit differences in the Western and European economic and social structures. It is standard in European culture to have 4 weeks of vacation time a year vs 2 weeks in the States, 35 hour work week vs a 40 hour work week, and now they are saying that no emails outside of work? I understand the idea of fair labor but there is a reason why the Western model has proved so successful.
ReplyDeleteI think this France's labour laws can potentially increase productivity in workers. By not being allowed to respond to work emails after hours, workers are forced to be more productive during the day, especially if they have to meet certain deadlines. Once they are finished with the work day, they can have peace of mind. Workers do not have to worry about spending long nights in the office or taking their work home with them. It makes work less stressful, and now they have more time to spend with their families.
ReplyDeleteI think this will be very helpful in increasing the productivity of workers. However, will there be an opportunity cost from not taking advantage of events that might occur within the hours they aren't allowed to work? I think this will be a cost, but it might be worth it if employees are much more successful and productive with their work time.
ReplyDeleteI disagree with the notion that labor laws are somehow a reflection of a universal desire to work less. People can choose the optimal amount of work they want and that the market provides (people can rarely work just one hour and can't possibly work more than 80). These laws are really just restrictions on people's choices and stifle those who derive their utility from getting ahead by working harder, for longer. People wonder why growth is so low in Western European nations and I would hold this up as an example. The French are literally putting a hard and fast limit on their total possible national output. The foregone earnings are just something they should be thinking about (as Katie astutely points out).
ReplyDeleteThis is a interesting strategy. I like how they are giving people a way to get away from work and live a life other than work but I feel like this will costs companies too. Yes this might improve the productivity of the workers from 9am-5pm but what about all the things that happen after hours? If something really needs to get done, you're just going to stop and pick it up the next day? I feel like this will put France behind every one else internationally.
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