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Say Goodbye to Spain's Three-Hour Lunch Break

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Re: Say Goodbye to Spain's Three-Hour Lunch Break

#91
post #86

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Until recently, most Arizonans also grew English-style grass lawns, with water that had to be piped in and species that are certainly not native. Apparently that's rapidly ending, so maybe the standard schedule will change as well someday.

With the invention of air conditioning and an abundance of solar power during the desert day, it's pretty stupid to let the weather dictate your behavior. People exist in Chicago despite the fact that it would be completely inhospitable without heating sources. The only difference is that air conditioning is a newer invention so people like you view it as some kind of opulent luxury rather than a technological tool l…

> With the invention of air conditioning and an abundance of solar power during the desert day, it's pretty stupid to let the weather dictate your behavior.

Not everyone works in an office, though.

Re: Say Goodbye to Spain's Three-Hour Lunch Break

#92
post #14

In the startup arena im in (USA) folks often work 8-9am till 7-8pm with half hour to hour MAX lunches. No one complains, people just burnout and move on in 1-2-3 years. No one gets overtime. It would be nice to have an open discussion with HR or whoever but its a sensitive topic, in this culture you are not "allowed" to tell how much you actually work... I guess its a "dirty little secret" but 9-5 does not exist anym…

I'm in the startup world, and it definitely does still exist. You're probably just working at a bad company.

Re: Say Goodbye to Spain's Three-Hour Lunch Break

#93
post #78

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Small shops manage to operate in, say, Arizona during those hours. That said, I think Spain's hours are a more natural adaptation to the climate than Arizona's.

Until recently, most Arizonans also grew English-style grass lawns, with water that had to be piped in and species that are certainly not native. Apparently that's rapidly ending, so maybe the standard schedule will change as well someday.

I wouldn't say most Arizona homeowners had grass lawns, as far as Phoenix goes, there are districts such as arcadia that have very large lawns, but I would say that is limited to specific areas.

There are many plants that are not native that still grow very well ranging from Mediterranean species to some that are from the desert regions of Asia.

*edit (Thu Jul 20 13:35:05 EDT 2017) I about parts of Chandler and Gilbert still have water rights tied to the property.

Re: Say Goodbye to Spain's Three-Hour Lunch Break

#94
post #86

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Until recently, most Arizonans also grew English-style grass lawns, with water that had to be piped in and species that are certainly not native. Apparently that's rapidly ending, so maybe the standard schedule will change as well someday.

With the invention of air conditioning and an abundance of solar power during the desert day, it's pretty stupid to let the weather dictate your behavior. People exist in Chicago despite the fact that it would be completely inhospitable without heating sources. The only difference is that air conditioning is a newer invention so people like you view it as some kind of opulent luxury rather than a technological tool l…

Try to go out with 45 degrees, with direct sunlight, etc. Some people will even faint within minutes. Because remember you don't get teleported to the shop, you have to walk.

Re: Say Goodbye to Spain's Three-Hour Lunch Break

#95
post #21

This is a non-sense of article as other spaniards have commented. The only companies that close 3 hours in the middle of the day are the shops, usually small shops. They do it because for long part of the year no one goes to the street from 2pm to 5pm, because it is so fucking hot. So instead, our culture close the shops at those times but keep them opens until 9pm or later. It is very common to see shops full of peo…

> Bonus: we don't add chorizo to the paella. The chorizo is mostly for the bbq

You should try it here in Germany, I was astonied the first time I saw them adding mayonnaise to the paella.

Re: Say Goodbye to Spain's Three-Hour Lunch Break

#96
post #30
post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

from someone who lived briefly in madrid: offices take up to 2h lunch. smaller shops and commerce takes around 3. workday can go up to 8pm, like most offices around the world and nobody expects extra paid hours. now, that was changing at the time. big stores, mostly H&M/zara/forever21 style of chinese fashion dump, are open from 9 to 9 like in the US. big international brands of super markets too. thats was causing l…

smaller shops and commerce takes around 3 ¿? In spain no one have more than 1hour for lunch.. The only ones that could fit in that description are cookers or restaurants staff, working in 2 parts. (12:00 - 16:00) and (20:00 - 23:00). Im from spain btw.

> Im from spain btw.

I can tell. Your command of English grammar and vocabulary is atrocious, man.

Re: Say Goodbye to Spain's Three-Hour Lunch Break

#97
post #78
post #71

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Spaniard; can confirm. 3 hour breaks are simply mandatory for small shops. In the south of the country during summer there is literally no way you can go out until... 19 or so if you don't want to die. So if shops closed then, there would be no business.

Small shops manage to operate in, say, Arizona during those hours. That said, I think Spain's hours are a more natural adaptation to the climate than Arizona's.

Would it be too much to ask Arizona to change, then ?

Re: Say Goodbye to Spain's Three-Hour Lunch Break

#98
post #3

Hardly surprising, and probably positive for many Spaniards, but it still makes me a little sad that every country is converging on a very similar way of working. Globalisation makes it inevitable, of course, but does Monday-Friday, 9-5 really make sense? Why not 8-6 Monday-Thursday with a three day weekend? We developers are often lucky that we can dictate our own hours and experiment with this, but I'd be fascinate…

> Why not 8-6 Monday-Thursday

There is no one reason why not. For some people it's because they need to work the same schedule as the people they regularly interface with. For some others there is no problem and they do work that schedule. Just depends on the requirements of the job, really.

Re: Say Goodbye to Spain's Three-Hour Lunch Break

#100
post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Greeks are a prime example -- despite the intense crisis and austerity measures, the country still values its lunch and coffee breaks Right, and their economy is in free fall. I'm not saying you can't do it, but that cost to doing it is ever-increasing.

Actually the free fall has seemed to have slowed, and bottomed out. It's just a different cultural value -- not every culture values the green dollar as much as America or the UK or likewise. Is it the best for your GDP? Probably not, but it's honorable. "Cash is King" is not something you hear many Greeks say about one another

Spending borrowed money like candy and calling repayment oppression isn't a cultural value I care about protecting.
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