Employment burden is a relatively new concept in modern economic theory and employment theory. The employment burden consists of the hours that the employed individuals are required to spend at their place of work within a specified period of time, in accordance with the contract concluded and in compliance with the national rules and regulations. The socio-economic content of the employment burden becomes particularly relevant in the context of sustainable development and in the face of depleting earth’s biological resources. According to the Ecological Footprint and Global Biocapacity, richer countries in the world consume several times more natural resources compared to developing countries due to long working hours. So far, the OECD countries have not felt the scarcity of biological and other resources for economic development and wealth creation, despite the fact that their territory does not have sufficient resources to meet the demand. Thanks to high productivity and long working hours, the income of the economically active population in rich countries is high enough to meet the needs beyond the first 3 steps of the Maslow’s pyramid, while remaining able to make savings. High income level leads to overconsumption and obesity, followed by the need for long working hours and even higher incomes to improve health, which is greatly damaged by a high income level and unreasonable food consumption. In practice, there is strong evidence that long working hours and increased incomes have negative side effects on many economically active citizens. In the context of over-exploitation of biological resources, the logical question is raised: how long can it continue and what will be the consequences? In fact, this is the most important issue for sustainable development. To date, many EU countries have developed various plans for sustainable development. Given the continuing over-exploitation of biological resources and the intensification of the greenhouse effect, it is hypothesized that policymakers believe that a national sustainable development plan is in itself a sufficient condition for economic activity in a country to follow the principles of sustainable development. Reducing the employment burden, especially in high-income countries, can be the first significant step towards sustainable development, which can have the following positive effects: a) the number of working hours per week will be reduced for the economically active population; b) countries may move to a 4-day working week and employees will have their third day off; c) in these countries, employment opportunities will be increased and the natural rate of unemployment will be reduced; d) employees will be able to spend more time with their family, children and friends and to cultivate spiritual values; e) the health condition of the economically active population will be improved, with a greater emphasis on a healthier lifestyle; f) the pressure on biological resources will be drastically reduced, the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere reduced and the risk of temperature increase reduced. It is important for policymakers to be aware that sustainable development will not succeed on its own, in spite of the thick documents of the Action Plan. The time has come for us to act in a profound and unusual way, but in line with the threat posed by the decline in the reproductive capacity of biological resources and the increase in the average annual temperature.