D With the longest working week in Europe, experts say Britain's health and productivity will decline unless something is done about it. In Japan they call it karoshi and in China it is guolaosi. As yet there is no word in English for working yourself to death, but as more and more people put in longer hours and suffer more stress there may soon be. This week, an American survey concluded that long working hours increased an individual's chances of illness and injury. It noted that for those doing 12 hours a day, there was a 37% increase in risk compared to those working fewer hours. Ronald Reagan was wrong, it seems, when he said : "Hard work never killed anyone. ” Death from overwork is not a new phenomenon in Britain but it is largely unremarked upon. The American study, published in Occupational and Environmental Medicine, points out that overtime and extended work schedules are associated with an increased risk of hypertension, cardiovascular disease, fatigue, stress, depression, musculoskeletal disorders, chronic infections, diabetes and other general health complaints. In Japan, most karoshi victims succumb to brain aneurisms, strokes and heart attack. Professor Cary Cooper, a stress expert at Lancaster University Management School says the risk is nor just confined( 限制 ) to those who work more than 60 hours but hits those that put in more than 45. "If you work consistently long hours, over 45 a week every week* it will damage your health, physically and psychologically. In the UK we have the second-longest working hours in the developed world, just behind the States and we now have longer hours than Japan," he says. Prof Cooper advocates "working smarter” not longer, and introducing flexibility into the workplace. He acknowledges that the Department of Trade and Industry is trying to encourage business to adopt such practices, but it is a slow process. Derek Simpson, the general secretary of Amicus, the manufacturing, technical and skilled persons' union, agrees with Prof Cooper. "UK employees work the longest hours in Europe, yet all the evidence shows that long working hours are bad for our health, equality, our families and for society. People's jobs are by far the biggest single cause of stress, and stress-related illness is the silent killer in our workplaces, impacting on workers' physical and mental health. As well as being bad for individuals, our long — hours culture is also bad for business because lower working hours relate directly to higher productivity. It is no coincidence that the UK has the least-regulated economy in Europe and is the least productive in the industrialised world. "Yet while other European governments are aiming to reduce weekly working hours below the working-time directive limit of 48 hours, our government is still desperately trying to keep the opt-out. ” In a survey. Amicus found a third of people said they didn't have enough time to spend with partners or children. Community work, socialising, personal fitness and hobbies all lost out to excessive working hours. Earlier this month, the law firm Peninsula published a survey of 1,800 employers. It found that four out of five of them worked more than 60 hours a week and revealed that seven out of 10 got only four hours' sleep a night. In her recent book Willing Slaves : How the Overwork Culture is Ruling Our Lives, the Guardian writer Madeleine Bunting points out that Britain's full-time workers put in the longest hours in Europe at 43. 6 a week compared with the EU average of 40. 3. The number of people working over 48 hours has more than doubled since 1998, from 10% to 26%. And one in six of all workers is doing more than 60 hours. 65. There is no word in English for working yourself to death, because A. karoshi only occurs in some countries B. nobody dies from overworking the UK C. people speaking English work fewer hours D. the phenomenon isn't taken seriously in the UK 66. If you work consistently over 45 hours a week, you may . A. received a stream of complaints B. feel bad physically or psychologically C . be desperate to take risks in your job D. appeal to a reduction in working hours 67. What is Prof Cooper's opinion of "working smarter"? A. It is very hard to be put into practice. B. It advocates working in different places. C. It will introduce flexible working times. D. It allows people to work arbitrarily. 68. According to Simpson, which is the direct silent killer in the workplaces? A. Families without love. B. Long working hours. C. Stress-related illness. D. Competitive society. 69. What does Simpson think of the UK? A. It is actively aiming to reduce working hours. B. It is reluctant to change the long — hours culture. C. It is a country with a productive work schedule. D. It is trying to regulate its businesses very strictly. 70. Which would be the best title for the passage? A. The long — hours culture threatens our life B. Most of the people in the UK lack sleep C. Europeans' physical or psychological diseases D. The working-time directive limit of 48 hours