ࡱ> <>; <bjbj 7"< ,3 f?UUUU       $!R/{{{/UU;DYYY{.UU Y{ YYYU0t]YZ0Y!X!YY!hJYF<//X{{{{! :  new europe is on holiday Baron Frankal Actually he is not and, as one of few remaining workers, the traditional august dip in workload has failed to materialise as several matters new europe is kindly babysitting refuse to stay asleep. Like most public institutions in Europe, the EU pretty much shuts up shop in August - and civil servants are not alone. Whichever way you look at the jungle of statistics, Europeans work less than most comparable others. Though single European figures hide national variations (e.g. central and eastern Europeans work longer hours than western Europeans), US workers clearly work more: averaging something like 1,800 hours a year to Europeans 1,500. That difference alone accounts for much of the reason 280 million Americans are more productive than 450 million Europeans. Yet, how many who enjoy this extra leisure would swap their European lifestyle for the longer hours of an American-style free market. As Jeremy Rifkin generalises it in his brilliant book, The European Dream: How Europe's Vision of the Future is Quietly Eclipsing the American Dream, whilst Americans live to work, Europeans work to live. Rifkin also points to the contrasting nature of European secularism and the religious roots of the american work ethic: the devil makes work for idle hands. The working time directive, which limits the maximum working week to 48 hours, is a classic piece of this social europe. However, over 70% of working age americans have a job, compared to under 60% of Europeans. The persistent nature of this unemployment and its concentration in certain regions and age groups (particularly amongst youth) keeps it high on the political agenda. The blame is generally laid on the twin evils of outsourcing and immigration, with vox pop generally calling for more social protection not less. What everybody knows, but no-one is prepared to admit, is that the real culprits are IT, automation, and globalisation. In the last seven years, China has permanently got rid of 15% of all its factory workers: even they are not as cheap as the technology replacing them. Jobs are a classic national issue, yet the single greatest potential benefit of the EU is the boost to employment that a properly-functioning Single Market offers. The EUs Lisbon agenda, trying to create the most competitive and dynamic knowledge-driven economy in the world, recognised this and focused efforts. However, the initiative has not succeeded, with Member States simply unwilling to open up their markets for fear of familiar names or national champions losing their local powerhouses - with consequential job losses. As ever, a bird in the hand is worth two in the (George W) bush. Real short-term worries trump possible long-term gains. But thats Europe all over as we, along with everybody else, make the agonisingly slow journey into the post-nation state world. 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