Could The US Adopt A Four-Day Workweek?
Summary from the AllSides News Team
California lawmakers have proposed the idea of mandating a four-day workweek, but can U.S. companies successfully adopt this change?
The new bill, AB 2932, would downsize the workweek from 40 to 32 hours for large companies with more than 500 employees. Workers would retain their original salaries and also be paid time and a half for working over 32 hours. While the California Chamber of Commerce has called the bill a "job killer" and warned that it would "discourage job growth in the state," there are an increasing number of companies testing the workweek change that are finding "productivity has not suffered."
SFGate (Lean Left bias) columnist Drew Magary highlighted a number of countries that have already implemented a four-day workweek and said more free time "provides more structure to your work routine." Conversely, The Wall Street Journal editorial board (Lean Right bias) argued that a four-day workweek would give workers "more leisure but at the cost of less efficiency and a lower standard of living."
An analysis piece from BBC News (Center bias) illustrated the benefits and drawbacks of a four-day workweek and emphasized that companies should put "carefully planned operational changes in place" before making the transition. The article also cited a Gallup (Center bias) study that found employees with a four-day workweek "rate their overall lives better" yet they were more likely to be "actively disengaged."
Featured Coverage of this Story
From the Center
The realities of the four-day workweekWhen Koray Camgöz was granted a four-day workweek, the benefits seemed numerous. The new schedule forced the London-based PR officer to organise his time better. He was still able to meet deadlines and stay on top of to-do lists, while enjoying an extra day off each week. Most importantly, for the recent father, he was able to spend more time with his child.
His day off rotated between Tuesdays and Wednesdays. In an always-on environment, he still had to be on call for emergencies on his day off, and also...
From the Left
We can make a four-day workweek happen if we wantBack when I entered the workforce in 1998, my ad agency introduced the concept of “Summer Fridays” to me for the first time. You might assume, given the work that they produce for the viewing public, that folks in the advertising industry don’t work terribly hard. This is incorrect. Every god-awful TV ad you’ve ever seen can take an obscene number of all-nighters and conference calls with clients in Topeka. Yes, the end result is Lizzo and a talking dog selling you a crypto exchange app named PHNTM, but many people...
From the Right
California’s French Four-Day WorkweekThe popular book “The 4-Hour Workweek” provides tips on how to make more money by working less. Now California Democrats are taking a page from the book by proposing to mandate a four-day week, which would require businesses to pay employees the same wages for less work. As labor economics goes, this is up there with paying people not to work and expecting more people to work.
A bill moving through the Legislature would shorten California’s normal workweek to 32 hours from 40 for companies with more than 500 employees....
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