Originally Posted by Ftrooppilot

Sorry. I should have been more specific.

"The image of French work ethics is mediocre (this is an understatement....) : 35-hour work week law, constant strikes, 5 to 8 weeks vacation, early retirement etc... Only in France can you work so few hours/year compared with other countries (the difference between France and the USA is on average 330 hours/year)."

"People work less in Europe because there’s no direct benefit in working more and earning more: painful progressive taxation is the disincentive which in turn has allowed governments to fund generous programs that serve as a safety net for many working and non-working Europeans. As a result the incentive to hoard for a rainy day is less; there is a nice blanket that ensures one’s security in case work derived revenues dry up. Now I know that drastic cuts are being implemented in some European countries, but it’s not too hard to note the huge divergence between US and European entitlements. This economic phenomenon has spawned a culture that has:

(a) created a workforce that has grown accustomed to a certain level of wealth which can be attained with a reasonable but not excessive amount of work;
(b) allowed a culture wherein individual gratification is far more focused on leisure activities and not work (the infamous 35-hour workweek);
(c) made it easier to abandon religion as a spiritual guide which is now more easily achieved by the individual who is economically secure and free to pursue whatever interests he or she has. "