.

Thereof, how many hours is a 35 hour work week?

The standard work week is 35 hours. An unpaid 30-minute meal period is expected to be included when defining the work schedules (i.e., the starting and ending times must result in 7.5 hours per day for a five-day work week.)

Similarly, does 35 hours a week include lunch? By general standards your lunch break is not considered to be "working time," meaning that if you are working 8-4 and taking an hour for lunch you are actually working 35 hours per week. That said, culture dictates practice.

Keeping this in view, does France still have a 35 hour work week?

The working week in France is 35 hours. Correct. A full working week in France is officially set at 35 hours. Many employees agree to work more than 35 hours per week—but they will be compensated for this, for example through additional holiday.

Why do we work 40 hours a week?

In 1938, Congress passed the Fair Labor Standards Act, which required employers to pay overtime to all employees who worked more than 44 hours in a week. They amended the act two years later to reduce the workweek to 40 hours, and in 1940, the 40-hour workweek became U.S. law.