| Japan has a problem many other
countries would envy—its workforce works too hard. Curing Japanese workers of
disease "workaholism" is proving a difficult job, partly because many of them
like work better than anybody else, experts say. Last month, the Japanese government passed a law for a 40-hour working week, down from 48 hours, to let people spend time away from the office or factory. But it could be many years before average work hours fall to the new level. In 1985, Japanese workers worked an average of 2 168 hours a year. But people in Britain worked 1 952 hours, the United States 1 924, West Germany 1 965 and France 1 643. Many Japanese workers work long hours not only because of devotion and pleasure of the job, but also because of fear and inefficiency (无效，不称职). Many people feel that if they raked week off, they will lose touch with the business and fall behind other people. So they would rather stay at their desks. It is also considered bad form in many offices to leave before the boss. So workers will sit at their desks pretending to be busy until their boss finally puts on his jacket and heads out the door. |