Long Hours Equals High Energy Consumption
I received a press release from the Center for Economic and Policy Research letting me know about a new study they've released titled "Are Shorter Work Hours Good for the Environment? A Comparison of U.S. and European Energy Consumption."
The study breaks down GDP versus hours worked developed nations, with a specific focus on the differences between the U.S. and EU-15 (Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Ireland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom). There is pressure in Europe to adopt more of an American-style business model, but that would result in a 25% increase in energy used, making it much more difficult for those nations which have ratified the Kyoto Protocol to meet their goals.
On the flip side, if the U.S. followed the EU-15 in terms of work hours, employed workers would have seven additional weeks off per year (some of this in longer weekends) and the United States would consume 20% less energy.
I wonder if this study takes into account the energy intensive things we Americans tend to do on our time off, however.
