> It's a real puzzle why the demand for a shorter work week has not
> caught on here in the US, particularly because ir has been successful
> in France and Germany, It;s worth noting that the European social
It seems that large employers hold all the cards, and they set the standards smaller employers follow. Every year fewer and fewer employees in the US have access to collective bargaining in which they could even propose a shorter work week.
Current collective bargaining, where it occurs, seems to focus on rearguard action, like preservation of healthcare benefits.
I think its common in the US to believe in "work hard, get ahead" which engenders suspicion of shorter work weeks anyway.
> In my grim, dour, Puritan way, I think people do
> need negative incentives like the threat of bankruptcy and lost
> profits, and indeed lawsuits, to keep their mind on their work, as
Don't wait until your own work week is reduced to read _Empire_. Then join the multitude where we're trying to figure out how to implement Negri's "refusal of work" :-)
Chris