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On 1st June 2015, the second meeting of the European Parliament's Interest Group on Work-Life Balance was organised by the European Sunday Alliance. During the meeting that was hosted by MEPs Thomas Mann and Evelyn Regner, Prof. Dr. Hartmut Rosa of Jena university (Germany) called for the creation of more spheres for deceleration. Rosa - an expert on the modern acceleration society - discussed the need for an improved work-life balance with about 40 participants, representing members of the European Parliament and civil society organizations. According to Prof. Dr. Rosa, it is key that we create collective synchronised free times that allow for deceleration and leisure instead of ticking off  one’s to-do list.

“We are running out of time”, stated Rosa. Despite all technological advancements which are geared towards saving time we are shifting from the hope of a better work-life-balance to the unspoken idea of a “work-age” balance. Whereas the good life seems to begin with retirement, the chronic mismatch between the perceived workload and the available time-resources during the “rush hour of life” and in addition the fear of losing one`s job creates a spiral, which leads to the feeling of no escapes and no control over one’s own life. Burnout and stress are symptoms of that development. A social basic salary could be a solution, proposed Prof. Dr. Rosa, because it would take pressure from employees. That is why we need “oases of deceleration”. Collective time-outs and holidays should be used for reading books, listening to music and playing games instead of buying new ones. Rosa emphasized that “time-politics cannot be an isolated instrument”, but that we need to change the political and socio-economic structures with a new vision of a post-growth society.