Vincent Delfau

Work longer hours to save jobs: that's the deal Patrick Starck, the chief executive officer of the French subsidiary of Hewlett-Packard Co. is offering workers there. He's surfing a wave of criticism of the country's 35-hour working week rule, which stands accused of imposing a "competitive disadvantage" on French industry. By linking working hours to the job cuts threatened by the company's restructuring plan, Starck is hinting at a way of implementing the plan that is better for the workers.