1 The international policy response Through the turmoil, the authorities in the major Northern Hemisphere economies escalated their responses, as it became clear that successive interventions were at best only holding back the tide.
On one hand, a substantial portion of the global labour force now works very long hours (more than 48 hours per week). On the other hand, there has been a growth of (often involuntary) short-hour and part-time contracts, with the most famous example probably being the so-called “mini jobs” in Germany.