Week-end
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Week-end
- The legal workweek (in the UK called the working week) varies from nation to nation.[clarification needed] The weekend is a part of the week usually lasting one or two days in which most paid workers do not work.
Around the world
Muslim world
In Muslim-majority countries the legal work week in the Middle East is typically either Saturday through Wednesday (as in Algeria and Saudi Arabia), Saturday through Thursday (as in Iran) or Sunday through Thursday (as in Egypt, Syria, United Arab Emirates) [1]
Australia
In Australia, the working week begins on Monday and ends on Friday.
China
In China, the working week begins on Monday and ends on Friday.
Europe
In Europe, the standard full-time working week begins on Monday and ends on Friday. It's the case for France, Italy, the Netherlands. The work week is about 40 hours excepts in France where the Plural Left government introduce the 35-hour workweek) in February 2000. Most of sellers are open for business on Saturday, but more rarely on Sunday.
Hong Kong
In Hong Kong, the working week begins on Monday and ends on Saturday.
Israel
For most Israelis, the workweek begins on Sunday and ends on Thursday or Friday at noon[2] to accommodate the Jewish Sabbath which begins Friday night.
Turkey
In secular Turkey the workweek is Monday through Friday, as in Western countries.
United Kingdom
The EC Working Time Directive regulates that workers cannot be forced to work for more than 48 hours a week on average. (Although the UK can opt out if it so chooses). The minimum holiday entitlement is now 28 days per year but that includes Public Holidays. You could technically work 6 hours every day for 337 days in a row. [3]
United States
The standard business office workweek in the United States is from Monday to Friday, 40 hours per week. However, many service providers are open for business on Saturday and Sunday as well.
History
The notion of a weekly rest is ancient. The Jewish Sabbath, known as Shabbat, is from sunset Friday to when it is fully dark on Saturday. Sunday has traditionally been viewed as a Christian Sabbath, though not all Christians acknowledge it as such. The French Revolutionary Calendar had ten day weeks and allowed decadi, one out of the ten days, as a leisure day.
The ancient sabbath is the origin of the present-day practice of "the weekend," Saturday and Sunday in Western countries, in which most employees usually do not have to go to work. Whereas the sabbath itself was just one day each week, the preceding day also came to be taken off, because it was considered necessary to do preparatory tasks at home that would permit proper sabbath observance the next day, i.e., cessation from work.
Weekends for students
Some colleges and universities afford students the opportunity to choose classes scheduled Monday/Wednesday and Tuesday/Thursday, giving the students an extra weekend day on Friday. Some college students take advantage of this trend and go out to bars and nightclubs on Thursday nights leading to the phrase "Thursday is the new Friday." [4]
