The earthquake in France

Or should that read man bites dog? Get this:

French workers at a car components factory owned by Bosch on Monday dealt a blow to the country’s law limiting the working week to 35 hours, as they unilaterally accepted demands from the private German automotive group to work longer for the same pay.

The near-unanimity of the vote at Bosch’s Vénissieux plant near Lyon is expected to encourage other companies to seek ways of securing greater flexibility in Europe’s rigid labour markets, in the absence of political will for reform. The vote was the first of its kind in France and could set a precedent for a gradual de facto reversal of the 35-hour week.

But alas, it may not be as radical as you think. The vote was to extend the workweek from 35 to er…36 hours a week. Still, you know what Chairman Mao said.

Here is my previous post on the earthquake in Germany, read here too.

Addendum: Bill Sullivan points me to the Tao Te Ching as the original source for the Mao quotation.