NationStates Jolt Archive

I'm not entirely certain, but do Europeans work with a one or two-hour break around noon? Unlike the US that goes straight through the day. I'm asking if European hours are from say 0700h-1100h and then 1300h-1700h, with the two-hour break in between. I've always assumed this, but is it true. I hope you understand me...

You would normally do a 9-5 job, with lunch for half an hour to an hour somewere around, well, lunchtime. :)

depends on the country

I wish I was French:(

edit: Americans don't have lunch?

I worked from 8:30 to 18:00 with no break today, but I don't think that's common.

I mean like banks and stuff are closed for lunch, not just a break. The US has breaks, but we stay open. I've seen travel books that show lunchtime closings.

I mean like banks and stuff are closed for lunch, not just a break. The US has breaks, but we stay open. I've seen travel books that show lunchtime closings.
Depends on the shop. Most places stay open through lunch these days.

Depends on the shop. Most places stay open through lunch these days.
Did they used to close? Also, the UK might be different from mainland Europe.

EDIT: Whatever the answer, I'm still going to call split hours European-style...preferred-style.

depends on the country

I wish I was French:(

edit: Americans don't have lunch?
I had mine around 3:40 pm today. It's always kind of hectic here towards the end of the month.

I mean like banks and stuff are closed for lunch, not just a break.

I think they run shifts with people coming and going at different times at least that’s what my mum does at her Fraud busting thingy (which is run by a bank)

Why do you ask?

Did they used to close? Also, the UK might be different from mainland Europe.

EDIT: Whatever the answer, I'm still going to call split hours European-style...preferred-style.
lol.

Some shops used to close for the staff to have lunch, but most will stagger their employers lunch breaks now so they can stay open.

Banks here in the UK do funny things, though. I've never understood how anyone is meant to get anything done in them when they close at 16:30 on weekdays and don't even open at weekends.

I mean like banks and stuff are closed for lunch, not just a break. The US has breaks, but we stay open. I've seen travel books that show lunchtime closings.
Oh! I was all confused where you might have gotten the idea that your average European office drone has a two-hour lunch break! o.O

Well, in Germany, stores and banks in the bigger cities are open during lunch hours.

In medium to smaller towns, the bank will almost certainly be closed from about noon/12:30pm to 2pm, and many smaller shops will be, too. Not the bigger chain stores, though, and never the supermarkets.

a) First of all, if you consider "European" the 25 nations of the EU, you still have 25 labour legislations with different work hours.

Still, in most countries people have to work 8 hours a day (more or less, as many people will work more off duty, and some dont do shit in their work hours :P )

Regulations on company work hours vary alot, depending on the type of company; Some stay open 24 hours (offices, fuel stations and the likes) while others have regulated time by the goverment (generally local authority: these include discoteques, but might also include shops), and others have sectorial self imposed work hours (all banks close to the public at 1700, though they keep on working :P )

This is for my country alone. As I said, there are 25 different countries in the EU..

b) Legally, every worker as one lunch hour. Though again, depending on how flexible your work is, you might spend more.. you just need to compensate so to give the employee the 8 hours.

I define Europe as any nation not under "communist" influence during the term of the USSR...basically Western Europe. German, Austria and Italy westward. I call east of that Russia, the Russian Republics, or Eastern Europe.

I think I get it now...major stuff follows "US-style" and minor shops and more small-business follows "European-style", closing midday for an hour or two.

I mean like banks and stuff are closed for lunch, not just a break. The US has breaks, but we stay open. I've seen travel books that show lunchtime closings.

I've never seen shops close for lunchtime... well, one. The little shop in the tiny village where my grandmother grew up.

Other than that, I normally take 30 min luch break, on a 9 hour working day.

I define Europe as any nation not under "communist" influence during the term of the USSR...basically Western Europe. German, Austria and Italy westward. I call east of that Russia, the Russian Republics, or Eastern Europe.

I think I get it now...major stuff follows "US-style" and minor shops and more small-business follows "European-style", closing midday for an hour or two.

So, Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Latvia are all not Europe?
The European Union holds a different view.

On topic: What Portu Cale said. Between 30min and 1h lunch break is the norm.

I've never seen shops close for lunchtime... well, one. The little shop in the tiny village where my grandmother grew up.

Other than that, I normally take 30 min luch break, on a 9 hour working day.
Wow, really? My hometown has a population of about 30,000 so it's not completely tiny, and when I was growing up (i.e.pretty much about the same time you were growing up) every shop closed during lunch hours! Except, like I said, the bigger supermarkets. Even today some small, privately owned stores still close during lunch hours. If anything, I would have expected Bavaria to have been even more like that.:p

Nothing that services people directly here closes for lunch. I've never seen anything "closed for lunch." Only places where you have to book an appointment, but those aren't closed either. They just don't book you between 12 and 13.

I think perhaps those countries that have "siesta" close for a couple of hours at lunchtime.

You're thinking of the Spanish siesta, with the long lunch to avoid the heat. Thats still practiced, but isn't as vital as it used be due to air conditioning etc.

Wow, really? My hometown has a population of about 30,000 so it's not completely tiny, and when I was growing up (i.e.pretty much about the same time you were growing up) every shop closed during lunch hours! Except, like I said, the bigger supermarkets. Even today some small, privately owned stores still close during lunch hours. If anything, I would have expected Bavaria to have been even more like that.:p

No, I can't remember any shop being closed over lunchtime, ever. Well, apart from the one in my granny's village. Oh, and one small stationery shop close to my school. But the owner was on his own there, and he would open before school started, then close for an hour around 11 and open again when school ended :)

So, Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Latvia are all not Europe?
The European Union holds a different view.

On topic: What Portu Cale said. Between 30min and 1h lunch break is the norm.
Turkey also wants to be in it. Defining Europe by an organization isn't really the best idea.

Well it seems this thread has become a discussion of lunch hours. So Ill put in mine.

My high school has just dropped lunch from 45 minutes to 25 minutes because some nerds were skipping lunch for extra electives, so they cut lunch. IT was certainly feasible to have all periods 40, but they saw fit to make every one 42, except lunch. Now, we have a complex set of bells that go off during periods. Split periods that can screw up things, like friends who can never see each other. The US school system needs an enormous overhaul.

I do 10-6 with an hour lunch, usually from 2pm or so (dans l'angleterre).

My high school has just dropped lunch from 45 minutes to 25 minutes because some nerds were skipping lunch for extra electives, so they cut lunch. IT was certainly feasible to have all periods 40, but they saw fit to make every one 42, except lunch. Now, we have a complex set of bells that go off during periods. Split periods that can screw up things, like friends who can never see each other. The US school system needs an enormous overhaul.
Hehehe :)
In our school we had one bus that was a couple of minutes late every day. This was slightly disruptive, so they decided to Do Something. Guess what?
That's right! They moved the entire day forwards five minutes for everyone!
Classic.

I don't think I've ever seen a shop closed for lunch :confused:

Did they used to close? Also, the UK might be different from mainland Europe.

They used to close everywhere, even in the US. As things became busier and busier and people had less time to do stuff and at more strange times, businesses started to keep straight hours, then longer hours and then weekends.

Europe has been slower in this trend but has pretty much caught on to the US, specially the big cities. The smaller towns still keep the traditional times. Other places in the world are more or less along the trend, but moving towards longer hours.

Depends on the shop. Most places stay open through lunch these days.
depends on the country too. uk is fine but i guess the hotter european places have siestas (sp?) or something. things were open in france just now all day :)

They used to close everywhere, even in the US. As things became busier and busier and people had less time to do stuff and at more strange times, businesses started to keep straight hours, then longer hours and then weekends.

Europe has been slower in this trend but has pretty much caught on to the US, specially the big cities. The smaller towns still keep the traditional times. Other places in the world are more or less along the trend, but moving towards longer hours.
So its traditional vs. modern rather than America vs. everyone else...ok

My high school has just dropped lunch from 45 minutes to 25 minutes because some nerds were skipping lunch for extra electives, so they cut lunch. IT was certainly feasible to have all periods 40, but they saw fit to make every one 42, except lunch. Now, we have a complex set of bells that go off during periods. Split periods that can screw up things, like friends who can never see each other. The US school system needs an enormous overhaul.
All of that is 100% fucked.

Our lunch is 40 minutes.

All of that is 100% fucked.

Our lunch is 40 minutes.
You live in Canada...well thats just one story of many about my high school...i could go on and on.

I live in a small place on a small Island, and I have seen a couple of shops shut for lunch, usually small one man band places but never known a big business or a bank or supermarket shut for lunch. I get half an hour and I work at Marks and Spencers. it seems about the same in most stores etc.

As a European I work two hours every day and make €4,000 a month. :D

depends on the country

I wish I was French:(

edit: Americans don't have lunch?

Depends on the company. Some have an hour lunch break, some 30 minutes. I worked one job where we had a 40 minute lunch break.

I've never seen shops close for lunchtime... well, one. The little shop in the tiny village where my grandmother grew up.

Other than that, I normally take 30 min luch break, on a 9 hour working day.

Try Spain. When we lived there in the early 1980's almost all governemt offices, stores and shops were closed for several hours during "siesta." (lunch)

As a European I work two hours every day and make €4,000 a month. :D

You must be French. :D

You must be French. :D
No. Actually what I said above is completely untrue.

Try Spain. When we lived there in the early 1980's almost all governemt offices, stores and shops were closed for several hours during "siesta." (lunch)

Siesta is not Lunch, though. It's a different rythm of life you'll find in most warm countries. I remember things closing down for the early afternoon all over Turkey, but then opening up again in the late afternoon and remaining open well into the night.

it depends on a number of things...

if you sign up to the working time directive (40 hours max)

if you are a manager

if you are in a critical role

and most important (in the UK at least) - if you want to keep your job

Siesta is not Lunch, though. It's a different rythm of life you'll find in most warm countries. I remember things closing down for the early afternoon all over Turkey, but then opening up again in the late afternoon and remaining open well into the night.

Actually they eat the big meal of the day during siesta and eat a light meal late at night. In Saudi Arabia everything closes down in the afternoon and then reopens in the early evening. To hot to be out during the afternoon even in October.

You must be French. :D

Here's what I don't understand:

The french have limited their work week to 35 hours, and like a billion weeks of vacation. Everyone acts like that is evil or something. Why?

After all, most of us are just working for a rockerfeller bank anyway, what's so cool about a sixty hour week and no vacation?

in the UK we work longer hours than our continental brothers, for pretty much the same pay (especially considering the higher inequality in this country), and it costs far, far more to live here than on the continent.... that's just stupid if you ask me :rolleyes: :(