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"Here for the interview?", asked John, sitting across the short hallway from what he believed to be a contender for the entry level IT job he had applied for three weeks prior.

"Yeah, yeah," answered Paul. "Traveled all the way from London, England. That two day work week allure will get you."

John nervously laughed. "Haha - yeah. It'll get you."

The door to the interview room swung open with a large blue tentacle holding the handle - a disheveled looking human exiting.

"Successful or not you will here from Blorg in due course."

"You too!" said the human nervously before realising his error.

"John?"

"Yeah."

"Please step inside the interview room."

Paul stood from his chair and awkwardly made his way around the 'you too' human who stood idly in the hallway wondering what he had just said.

The interview room was strangely human. Bleak, bare minimum furniture, and the overwhelming sense of workplace depression. John sat in the seat facing the interview panel and attempted to collect his thoughts."

"Hello ..." Primak checked his notes, "John. So, John. First thing is first, the previous human stated he would be willing to work for three days rather than two for the same pay as long as did not inform the other humans of the offer. However, we have chosen to inform you of the offer to find out what your counter proposal is. On our planet we call this leverage."

John was taken back, "but I thought on this planet you only worked two days a week? That's why I traveled here."

"This is correct but never have we had someone willing to so quickly sell out his own kind for a job. Within our species this would never happen."

"Well what if I worked four days?"

The interview panel huddled and began to whisper to each other.

"And you will do this for the same pay?"

"Begrudgingly yes."

"And people do this on Earth to each other? This is normal practice ... this ... exploitation of a workforce? Playing staff off against each other in private at the benefit of those who run the company?"

"Erm, also yes."

"And the workers they do not revolt?"

"Well not against those above us. We usually just revolt against those on or around the same level as us."

"We see. OK this has been a fantastic interview. Allow me to walk you out."

A large blue tentacle twisted the door handle and ushered John out the room.

"Successful or not you will here from Blorg in due course."

John stood in the hallway as the final candidate, Paul, stood from his seat and walked in to the room. As the door shut John could hear the faint voice of the interview panel.

"So ... Paul ... you will never guess what the other humans said about you and how many days they agreed to work just so YOU wouldn't get the job."

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Submitted by Bill_Murray_Movies on Tue, Aug 23, 2022 to /r/WritingPrompts/

The prompt

Humanity discovers an intelligent alien civilisation. When they find out aliens only work 2-day work weeks humanity has to tend to a new problem: Interplanetary brain drain.