Sundays and the ideal work week

Isn’t it amazing to have a whole day, one day out of 7 devoted to leisure? This is unique in the Judeo-Christian tradition, in fact among all “people of the book.”

The Roman merchants used to make fun of Jewish traders, who rested and so did not compete in the marketplace for one day out of every 7.

But in fact, increasing the work week, for instance to 48 hours, as in the United States during World War II, leads to an increase in accidents.

 A work week much longer than 40 hours “result in stress-related health problems, on the large scale, as well as a drought of leisure. Furthermore, children are likely to receive less attention from overworked parents, and childrearing is likely to be subjectively worse. The exact ways in which excessive workweeks affect culture, public health, and education are debated, but the existence of such a danger is undisputed.”  http://www.associatepublisher.com/e/w/wo/working_time.htm