Should American Business Leaders Look to France?

In France, there is legislation that limits the work week to 35 hours and prevents managers from emailing their employees outside of work hours. There were also riots in the streets when the government raised the retirement age from 62 to 64. To most American business leaders, this seems crazy. It would be impossible to make money with such restrictions and culture. And yet, the richest man in the world is French. And France has the world’s seventh-largest economy, one and a half times the size of Canada’s. So maybe, there’s something worth looking at. Especially as the next generation of American workers is increasingly reticent to prioritize work over family, mental health, and free time. Maybe it’s time to analyze the impacts of changing employee preferences and behaviors and develop and execute strategies that have been proven to work for businesses in countries that have been dealing with this stuff for decades and ultimately help your company win the war for talent!

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