France has a 35-hour workweek That doesn't actually mean French workers only work 35 hours per week. It means: 1. Hours worked beyond 35/week can be reclaimed

France has a 35-hour workweek That doesn't actually mean French workers only work 35 hours per week. It means: 1. Hours worked beyond 35/week can be reclaimed as vacation 2. This only applies to low level white-collar jobs. Secretaries get 35 hours. Engineers don't. 3. There's a lot of abuse. The definition of "low level" is vague, and not tied to salary. So you'll see a lot of "editorial managers" who barely make minimum wage, but don't get their 35 hours.