Estrés quebecuá

El diario local saca en tapa hoy que empleados están juntando firmas para obligar al shopping center más importante de la zona a cerrar el 2 de enero. Como si la provincia de Québec no tuviera un régimen de horarios comerciales altamente restrictivo.

Estoy preparando una carta al director MUY light para que la publiquen. Empecé en inglés para aclarar las ideas y ahora la tengo que redactar en francés. Qué momento:

We are in the midst of one of the most serious financial crisis in recent times. The impact is felt everywhere. It is causing massive job losses in the region, particularly in the manufacturing sector, prompting action from the federal and provincial governments, who are pouring billions of dollars in subsidies.

And yet, it seems there are people who are convinced that the real issue at stake is too much work.

The newspaper tells us that employees are collecting signatures to force the biggest local shopping mall to close on January 2nd. They believe that the province of Québec does not have enough non-working holidays. They state that they would prefer to spend more time with their families instead of working.

I believe that spending more time with the family is a very laudable goal. But, as far as I know, working at the mall is one among many options. If the employees are not happy with the working hours, perhaps they should look for a better job instead of trying to impose restricted services to the rest of the community.

There are many people in other sectors, such as manufacturing, call centers, medical and emergency services, who routinely work during evenings, nights and public holidays. Should they also start collecting signatures to spend more time with their families?