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Plenty of vacation, a 35-hour work week - who wouldn't want to work in France? Well, if you have doubts, maybe this next bit of news will convince you. A new law gives French employees the right to disconnect from work after hours. As of January 1, many companies can no longer encroach on workers' personal and family time. NPR's Eleanor Beardsley reports.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
UNIDENTIFIED MAN: (Speaking French).
(SOUNDBITE OF PHONE RINGING)
UNIDENTIFIED MAN: (Speaking French).
UNIDENTIFIED GIRL: Papa, Papa.
ELEANOR BEARDSLEY, BYLINE: This video from a career management company's website shows a father reading "Little Red Riding-Hood" to his daughter while he continues to take work calls. Then he mistakenly calls his boss the big bad wolf. The ad is funny, but staying connected to your job 24/7 is not, says labor lawyer Patrick Thiebart.
PATRICK THIEBART: Because if an employee receives emails during all their weekends and at night until 11:00 p.m., then I can assure you that at a certain point in time, it can impact the employee's health.
BEARDSLEY: The French government says more and more people are working way too many hours because they cannot disconnect from the office. The new law stipulates that companies with more than 50 workers must come up with a policy to enable their employees to disconnect. It's a difficult issue, says Thiebart, because the digital culture also gives freedom and flexibility.
THIEBART: Everybody is happy with the smartphones and the new technology because actually, for employees, they can work at home, they don't have to spend time, they don't have to spend money in commuting. For companies, it's great because they can also save money because they don't need all the staff in the premises of the company.
BEARDSLEY: Many large European companies and government departments already recognize the right of their employees to disconnect from work. Volkswagen and French insurer Axa have taken steps to limit out-of-hours messaging, including cutting email connections in the evening and weekends. Thiebart says his clients, many of them large corporations, are not hostile to the new French law because they believe a lack of downtime decreases the productivity of their workforce.
Parisians are working up a sweat after a day at the office at this gym in the 15th arrondissement. Jean Luc Bauche is lifting weights, but he's still connected to his smartphone. He says it's a great idea to be able to disconnect, but...
JEAN LUC BAUCHE: No, it's not possible because (speaking French).
BEARDSLEY: "The law won't work," he says, "because it's counter to the way society is evolving." Bauche says most people don't dare to disconnect because they're frightened they'll miss something. Eleanor Beardsley, NPR News, Paris.