Teenagers allowed to work longer

13 and 14 year olds are allowed to work more hours per week in the Netherlands. From now on, they can work 7 hours on Saturday instead of 6. During the week they are allowed to start one hour earlier: at 7 am instead of 8 am. Furthermore, they are allowed to perform in films and on stages more often. (ld, Dutch). Children this way get responsibilities at an earlier age. The border between learning and working will slowly disappear over the coming years. Starting at a young age, children will deliver small contributions to society. They will spend less time learning in school, but will work, in cooperation with other students, in projects for companies and governments, physically together but also especially virtually connected. The lifelong student thus returns in some respect. On the other hand they will learn longer, as the world society needs more specializations. And in a changing society it will be very normal for a fifty year old person to start a new education, or at least be less productive, as jobs will change rapidly, while this fifty year old will still have to work for twenty five years (for less hours of course, but still). Letting go of the restrictions for young children is part of this development.

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