Câu hỏi: In some countries, people spend long hours at work. Why does this happen?

Is it positive or negative development?

Nowadays, working overtime is increasingly common for employees in many different parts
of the world. There are many reasons behind this phenomenon and I believe this brings
more harm than good to people.

There are two main reasons for the extension of working hours among people. Firstly,
people want to earn more money, which will satisfy their demand of affording their lives. In
this day and age, the living cost is much higher than before, not only in metropolises but
also in rural areas. This puts a large financial burden on employees, especially ones who
are the breadwinner in the family. As a result, people have to work extra hours to feed
themselves and their family, and also to increase the living standard. Secondly, people have
to cope with a heavy workload these days, which makes them spend longer hours at work.
If people do not extend their working hours, they may not meet the deadlines and be unable
to finish given tasks, which prevents them from climbing the career ladder.

Despite the benefits that this trend may bring to people, I believe it is negative due to two
major reasons. One is that it causes a lot of detrimental health effects when people spend
too much time working. Overworking gives people little time to rest, and if this situation
continues for a long time, it may cause some physical diseases relating to the back, neck,
eyes and even heart. Moreover, dealing with a high volume of work continuously also
makes people suffer from mental problems such as stress, sleep disorders or even
depression. Another negative impact of this trend is people can not get a work-life balance.
Many people tend to spend more than half a day working, which makes it impossible for
them to spend enough time for themselves and their loved ones, including family and
friends. This leads to the fact that people may find no fun in life because they have no time
for family and their relationships are also likely to be broken.

In conclusion, the tendency of working extra hours is caused by the increasing living
expenses and overwhelming workload. Personally, I believe this brings more negative
impacts to individuals.

Vocabulary ghi điểm:

 Brings more harm than good: mang lại nhiều tác hại hơn lợi ích
 A large financial burden: gánh nặng tài chính lớn
 Breadwinner: trụ cột gia đình (về mặt tài chính)
 Climb the career ladder: thăng tiến trong công việc