TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Some countries have longer-than-average lunch breaks
The lunch break can last up to three hours in some countries.
Change Size
People enjoy lunch together. (Shutterstock/Pressmaster)
H
ow long people take for lunch on workdays may vary within a given week. There are days when it is necessary to eat lunch as quickly as possible, as close as possible to the work station.
On rare occasions it may be possible to enjoy a long, elaborate lunch while entertaining clients or celebrating milestones. But most people have a one-hour or less lunch break.
Thinking of working in a country where lunch breaks are longer? Reader’s Digest has shortlisted a few countries below.
Spain (3 hours)
Realizing that hot weather causes a decrease in productivity, most Spaniards take a siesta, taking their lunch break between 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. when the outdoor weather is at its hottest. Workers eat lunch and take a nap during the break, and return for three more hours of work.
However, according to The Guardian, the Catalonian government is set to issue a regulation stating that working hours end at 6 p.m. every day, so that people in the region might no longer enjoy a siesta.
Greece (3 hours)
Figuring out how to live life at a slow, leisurely pace? Leave it to the Greeks, for whom lunch is the biggest meal of the day. Reader's Digest reported that most people in Greece head home for lunch and a nap at about 2 p.m., and return to work at 5 p.m., when other workers across the globe are finishing work for the day.
Read also: Japan worker's pay docked for taking lunch 3 mins early
France (2 hours)
Lunch and afternoon breaks for school kids and working adults alike fall between 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. in most parts of France. Reader's Digest cited English-language French digital publication thelocal.fr, which reported that a recent survey found that 43 percent of French workers took more than 45 minutes for lunch every day.
China (2 hours)
The nap culture is apparently catching on in China, enabling factory workers to take 30-minute naps during a break, a 2014 NBC article reported. Lunch breaks fall between noon and 2 p.m., with a nap preceded by a quick lunch.
Brazil (2 hours)
A two-hour lunch break is common in Brazil, enabling workers to enjoy hearty lunches. Brazilian workers then return to work without needing to rush home for dinner, which is usually eaten late in the evening. Reader's Digest reported that Brazilian workers like to enjoy their lunch breaks to the fullest, by scheduling a meeting out of the office on 10:30 a.m. or 11 a.m. to be followed by a two-hour lunch break. (mut)
