Federal proposal for 32-hour workweek gets traction in Congress

[We Never Know]

Many people can't make it on 40 hours but would get overtime over 32 hours..
What are your thoughts on this?

"This week, the Congressional Progressive Caucus with nearly 100 lawmakers endorsed a bill that would cut the work week from 40 to 32 hours. The bill would require overtime pay after 32 hours."

Story here..
Federal proposal for 32-hour workweek gets traction in Congress

 

[Quetzal]

What limited articles I have read seem to indicate that this can be helpful. However, I believe there are edge cases that I am not considering. Selfishly... I am for it!

 

[Orbit]

It seems to have worked well for other countries who have tried it. I think U.S. employers will try to block it, though.

 

[Lain]

Many people can't make it on 40 hours but would get overtime over 32 hours..
What are your thoughts on this?

"This week, the Congressional Progressive Caucus with nearly 100 lawmakers endorsed a bill that would cut the work week from 40 to 32 hours. The bill would require overtime pay after 32 hours."

Story here..
Federal proposal for 32-hour workweek gets traction in Congress

I personally fail to understand why the work week is so incredibly short already and people still want to make it shorter?

Reading both of those things I feel like I am insane and not understanding a lot of information because working four days a week sounds degrading to me and not human. I am confused as to what the benefits are. I need to study more, studying things has no end.

 

[Nakosis]

I personally fail to understand why the work week is so incredibly short already and people still want to make it shorter?

Reading both of those things I feel like I am insane and not understanding a lot of information because working four days a week sounds degrading to me and not human. I am confused as to what the benefits are. I need to study more, studying things has no end.

See, I've always thought I could have a great life if not for the need to work for a living.

People specialize for efficiency. There is usually a demand for you to increase your efficiency in your role so there is little time left to expand into other ways to contribute. I have many interests but in working for someone else, these are not something I get paid for.

Art, music, literature, engineering, Maybe I'd be good at it, maybe not. Still extra time to find other ways to contribute.

 

[Lain]

See, I've always thought I could have a great life if not for the need to work for a living.

People specialize for efficiency. There is usually a demand for you to increase your efficiency in your role so there is little time left to expand into other ways to contribute. I have many interests but in working for someone else, these are not something I get paid for.

Art, music, literature, engineering, Maybe I'd be good at it, maybe not. Still extra time to find other ways to contribute.

I suppose if people spend said extra time in other work as you mention here then it'd all work out, although I don't really expect much from folks in this nation in doing that.

 

[Revoltingest]

Increasing the cost of business leading to increasing prices.
How could that possibly go wrong.

 

[Nakosis]

Increasing the cost of business leading to increasing prices.
How could that possibly go wrong.

I suspect the business folks could find ways to work with this.

I imagine staggering the work week so no overtime needs to be paid overtime.

 

[sun rise]

I personally fail to understand why the work week is so incredibly short already and people still want to make it shorter?

So short already? Even China is moving away from 9x9x6. You want people to work 6 days a week and 10 hour days?

working four days a week sounds degrading to me and not human. I

Many people already work 4x10 weeks or 9 days in 2 weeks (4.5 days a week). Why is that degrading and inhuman?

 

[Suave]

Many people can't make it on 40 hours but would get overtime over 32 hours..
What are your thoughts on this?

"This week, the Congressional Progressive Caucus with nearly 100 lawmakers endorsed a bill that would cut the work week from 40 to 32 hours. The bill would require overtime pay after 32 hours."

Story here..
Federal proposal for 32-hour workweek gets traction in Congress

Would employers be able to circumvent this proposed 32 hour work week by paying their employees a salary instead of paying an hourly wage to their employees?

 

[Revoltingest]

I imagine staggering the work week so no overtime needs to be paid overtime.

How would that be done?

 

[Lain]

So short already? Even China is moving away from 9x9x6. You want people to work 6 days a week and 10 hour days?

Many people already work 4x10 weeks or 9 days in 2 weeks (4.5 days a week). Why is that degrading and inhuman?

6 days a week with 10 hour days actually sounds like a good work week to me. I consider escaping work (which seems to be what this proposal is about, I am not sure for like I said I barley understood it and felt insane while reading the links) inhuman and degrading because I think labor is a divine gift from God to man (see the last thing in my signature). As Pope St. John Paul II said:

"Work is a good thing for man (a good thing for his humanity) because through work man not only transforms nature, adapting it to his own needs, but he also achieves fulfilment as a human being and indeed, in a sense, becomes 'more a human being.'"

It brings spiritual joy in my opinion and makes people better, so if indeed this proposal is about doing less of it (I may have read everything entirely wrong) then I fail to understand why anyone would want to do that.

 

[sun rise]

6 days a week with 10 hour days actually sounds like a good work week to me.

Clearly you should work those hours then even if it means ignoring family, religion and other aspects of life.

Most of us, especially me, got less productive because we burned out with too long work days. Being salaried, I sometimes had a real push for deadlines but balanced it later. I needed the time for my wife, my spiritual life and physical activities necessary for health along with friends.

 

[Lain]

Clearly you should work those hours then even if it means ignoring family, religion and other aspects of life.

Most of us, especially me, got less productive because we burned out with too long work days. Being salaried, I sometimes had a real push for deadlines but balanced it later. I needed the time for my wife, my spiritual life and physical activities necessary for health along with friends.

I don't think one should ignore those aspects of life, and in my opinion neither does God. That's why the the Church and the State and the culture give man a litany of holy days and celebration days on which to rest, spend time with family, etc, and of course people should exercise daily among other things.

By those three sources I mean like: the Octave of Christmas (on which I don't think people should work if they can avoid it, eight days), the 4th of July, and birthdays/city day-long festivals. Church, State, and culture giving days of rest. There are many more than those of course in those sources, so throughout the year there is much reprieve.

 

[Nakosis]

How would that be done?

Four days on, three days off. On these three off days you have other employees come into work.
You could have your company running 7 days a week. If your business model is profitable then running it seven days a week should just make it more profitable to cover the additional workers.
You could have a day/night shift to cover that fourth day. Or offer one group a 24 hour work week.

168 hours in a week. Lots of ways to fit 32 hour weekly shifts into that. Just got to let go of 9 to 5, Monday thru Friday.

 

[Revoltingest]

Four days on, three days off. On these three off days you have other employees come into work.
You could have your company running 7 days a week. If your business model is profitable then running it seven days a week should just make it more profitable to cover the additional workers.
You could have a day/night shift to cover that fourth day. Or offer one group a 24 hour work week.

168 hours in a week. Lots of ways to fit 32 hour weekly shifts into that. Just got to let go of 9 to 5, Monday thru Friday.

That doesn't really get around the overtime problem,
since there's always the inefficient option of hiring
more people.

 

[We Never Know]

Four days on, three days off. On these three off days you have other employees come into work.
You could have your company running 7 days a week. If your business model is profitable then running it seven days a week should just make it more profitable to cover the additional workers.
You could have a day/night shift to cover that fourth day. Or offer one group a 24 hour work week.

168 hours in a week. Lots of ways to fit 32 hour weekly shifts into that. Just got to let go of 9 to 5, Monday thru Friday.

Or run two shifts 20 hours each a week and get 40 hours(see below). Call them part time and not have to have benefits and insurance in them. WalMart does that if I remember correctly.

8 on Monday and Tuesday, 4 on Wed.
4 on Wed and 8 on Thurs and Fri.

 

[Nakosis]

That doesn't really get around the overtime problem,
since there's always the inefficient option of hiring
more people.

It shouldn't be inefficient to hire more people with the right business model.

Whatever your labor cost should be a fixed percentage of your return.

If 30% labor cost. So for every $30 you pay for labor your return would be $100 - the cost of labor so $70.
So if your labor cost is $60 your return is $140. $90 is $210 etc...

If the market doesn't support this model then you have too many workers anyway.

 

[Revoltingest]

It shouldn't be inefficient to hire more people with the right business model.

Whatever your labor cost should be a fixed percentage of your return.

If 30% labor cost. So for every $30 you pay for labor your return would be $100 - the cost of labor so $70.
So if your labor cost is $60 your return is $140. $90 is $210 etc...

If the market doesn't support this model then you have too many workers anyway.

Some workers cannot divide up their tasks into the same
work using more workers efficiently, eg, engineers.
Overhead increases with the number of workers.
Places I've worked would rather pay me overtime
to get more done than hire new help, who'd have
to be brought up to speed, & would have to work
simultaneously to be useful...meaning more facility
space would be needed.
Lawmakers typically don't understand the economics,
or they just don't care. Their primary goal is winning
votes to stay in office.

 

[Twilight Hue]

Many people can't make it on 40 hours but would get overtime over 32 hours..
What are your thoughts on this?

"This week, the Congressional Progressive Caucus with nearly 100 lawmakers endorsed a bill that would cut the work week from 40 to 32 hours. The bill would require overtime pay after 32 hours."

Story here..
Federal proposal for 32-hour workweek gets traction in Congress

I like it. I have a four day week at ten hour days and it has done wonders for the proverbial mind and soul. Of course a 32 hour week would be welcome as well if it's at full pay, but I still want four days.

Other countries do it and has very good results and has not impacted prosperity in the least.