Actually, it's the other way around. Europeans which work hard come here, instead of staying in Europe.
At every workplace I have been in and around, most workers seem to have an artificial limit in their head in regards to how much work they should do per day. Generally speaking, they are most always unwilling to exceed that limit and, if they do, they become bent out of shape. If they hit that limit at 11am, then they will float for the rest of the day... Young people, right out of college, seem to be more willing to work and dont seem to have those artificial limits the older workers usually have. This is why college grads are usually in higher demand then their experienced counterparts...
Uhm, no it is not. Western Europe has some very cushy regulations for its employees. Particularly France.
Which country has ciestas, which doesn't? Since you cite 2000-2008 as a very unproductive time.... http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/04/business/worldbusiness/04output.html I beg to differ.
That's what I was thinking. And even if he had not, I doubt he would have dealt with any Europeans in business either. The generosity of the European welfare system says plenty to me about Europeans. The most productive people generally speaking are the ones that have the lousiest welfare systems to fall back on - the lack of a government safety net is the greatest incentive to work IMO.