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Personally, I think the thing that's broken in the US is vacation time, not the work week.
I agree. If you look at the average total hours worked per year, the US is a little above average but not exceptionally high. Where we are the outlier in the world is with vacation time (as well as sick and parental leave), as well as the kinds of jobs where people are expected to put in long workweeks (due to who the labor laws exempt from the overtime pay requirements).
I agree. If you look at the average total hours worked per year, the US is a little above average but not exceptionally high. Where we are the outlier in the world is with vacation time (as well as sick and parental leave), as well as the kinds of jobs where people are expected to put in long workweeks (due to who the labor laws exempt from the overtime pay requirements).
And you can be on the job doing very little. Many firms have an expectation of a certain number of hours or "butt-in-seat" time - no matter how productive (or lack thereof) it is.
I don't mind working 40 hours a week, in fact I usually work more than that. And I love getting OT pay too.
IMO what we need is to stop overbuilding the major cities so that so many aren't stuck for so many hours in rush hour traffic. And dumping billions into public transportation isn't the answer.
Clearly you, like most of the posters in this thread, didn't actually read my OP.
Nobody is being FORCED to work a 40 hour week. If you prefer, get a job that only requires 30 hours, or any amount of hours you want. Will, you make less money? Probably, but that's your choice, right?
Don't paste links without including a pertinent excerpt (or two).
Or make whatever the point is by using your own phrasing.
I did:
"For the sake of debate, we have all read about how automation and robots are taking over many jobs. ...
So, should America reduce by 1 hour per year each year for the next decade the 40 hour work, in order to reduce the work week to 30 hours, but companies would need to increase pay proportionally to maintain the standard of living in the country?"
"For the sake of debate, we have all read about how automation and robots are taking over many jobs. ...
So, should America reduce by 1 hour per year each year for the next decade the 40 hour work, in order to reduce the work week to 30 hours, but companies would need to increase pay proportionally to maintain the standard of living in the country?"
Why on earth would companies do that? Pay more, to get less? I'm really not following you on this one, phet.
Why on earth would companies do that? Pay more, to get less? I'm really not following you on this one, phet.
Let me try one more time (I have to admit that if YOU didn't get where I was going with this, then I didn't state my suggestion very well).
According to the article I cited, robots will take over more and more jobs in the future.
Therefore there will be fewer jobs for humans...therefore more unemployment.
Therefore, would it not be a good idea to reduce work hours for a "full week" so that companies have to add jobs to make up the difference, hence less unemployment in the future.
Or do we solve the future unemployment issue in some other way?
According to the article I cited, robots will take over more and more jobs in the future.
Therefore there will be fewer jobs for humans... therefore more unemployment.
Therefore, would it not be a good idea to reduce work hours...
Or do we solve the future unemployment issue in some other way?
1) Earlier in this thread and in many others over my years here I have expressed the opinion
that we really do not have an unemployment problem so much as we have an over population problem.
A hundred million or so at current levels is often cited.
2) Whether their lives exist at the professional/artisan end or the direct labor end of the spectrum
many people actually enjoy their work; maybe even most. Enjoy it directly and/or gain some other satisfaction
from their work that goes beyond, often well beyond, what they might earn from the hours spent.
Combining the ideas in and around these two statements MY result is to promote and support the idea
that a US with a ~200Million population who actually enjoy what they do and gain satisfaction from it
and of course a good income ...
would be a far more appealing place for OUR grandchildren and theirs to live in than one with 450 or 500 Million
having to compete for every scrap with their own generational or even literal siblings.
Last edited by MrRational; 10-21-2018 at 02:45 PM..
Reason: writing is a process
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