A Lesson From Iraq

Iraq may be a "failed state" by any reasonable standard, but it does have a modicum of common sense and sensibility. The proposal to cut down government work hours during the summer, when temperatures of 120 degrees are not uncommon, makes a lot of sense, especially for employees who work outdoors or engage in strenuous activities. Just because the Iraqi government is not, by any stretch of the imagination, a model one, it doesn't follow that a policy such as this one is not one to emulate.

Here in Puerto Rico and elsewhere in the Caribbean, where the heat can also be oppressive, air conditioning notwithstanding, we would do well to implement some sort of similar humane measure for the summer months, both in the public and the private sectors.

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