Are the English “work rules” really that uncommon to foreign cultures?

Do the
Portuguese work ways have any “Englishness” about them?
In this essay, the English and the Portuguese way of working will be, based on the
analysis of the book “Work to Rule”, by the anthropologist Kate Fox. In this book, the
author portrays the behaviour of English at work in a very accurate and amusing way.
The most relevant and different aspects of these two very different cultures at work
will be analysed, as well as their common aspects.
The author begins to go over the ironic and self-deprecating humour so famously
common in English culture, including at work. The humorous honesty of English even
during business situations is not precisely a common aspect in the Portuguese work
culture. It can be said that the Portuguese, even though known to be great patriots,
are also big users of self-deprecating humour about their own country’s matters.
However, even though still amusing and generally nice, the Portuguese usually take
their work tasks seriously and do not let humour get in their way.
Regarding seriousness, Fox affirms that the English are “serious about work, but not
too serious”, and that they are inclined to follow what the author calls an “anti-
earnestness” regarding work. These aspects contrast with the Portuguese view of
work, where they usually take it very seriously and where incompetence is very much
despised. In many cases, this leads many workers to work over hours and sometimes
practically “living” for their jobs. Regarding the “anti-earnestness”, the Portuguese
seem to have no problem showing their passion and determination about their work,
unlike the English.
The anthropologist proceeds to stress the taboo subject of money in English culture.
This is another aspect that is treated quite differently in Portugal. Although there is of
course a peculiar politeness and sometimes discomfort about the subject of money,
the Portuguese generally do not have issues discussing it, when it needs to be
discussed.
Several other aspects of the behaviour of the English at work, mentioned by Kate Fox,
differentiate from the Portuguese behaviour. Examples of these are the salesmen,
who, unlike the insistingly annoying Portuguese salesmen, do not tend to show much
despair or motivation about selling their product, and the “fair play” adopted by the
English at work and business, that is not equally adopted in Portugal, where there are
several cases of corruption.
However, there is one common characteristic among the English and the Portuguese at
work, and probably in many other cultures, which is what the author calls the
“moaning rule”. Perhaps not as much as the English, but the Portuguese are very well-
known for their constant complaints about, not only work but everything in general.
In conclusion, the English have a very distinctive behaviour at work, when compared to
other cultures, including the Portuguese. This concerns not only their behaviour at
work but how they see work life in general as well. However, it can be said that, in the
end, every culture has its own characteristics regarding work and business that, when
further analysed, can seem extremely peculiar to foreign countries.