4 ms·

It's actually a decent bill. It basically says overtime starts at 32 hours instead of 40, and says that you can't cut salary because of this bill. I suspect i

It's actually a decent bill. It basically says overtime starts at 32 hours instead of 40, and says that you can't cut salary because of this bill. I suspect if it actually passed (highly unlikely) that it would lead to wage stagnation for a few years as companies would say "well you got a 20% raise because of this law so you're good for a few years".

enlyth 3y ago
Feels like it would be worth it, at least eventually. Time is worth so much more than money
avarun 3y ago
The other issue is that most white collar careers are already considered overtime-exempt, so it doesn’t really matter if the cutoff is 32 hours or 40 hours. Given employment structure in the US a company can require you to work 100 hour weeks and the only thing employees can do is quit.
- rvense 3y ago
  IMO the real battle here is the cultural normalization of working 32 hours. The legal structure is just one part of it.
- soupfordummies 3y ago
  >> a company can require you to work 100 hour weeks and the only thing employees can do is quit. Or the employee can stick to the 32 and force the company to fire them.
deleted 3y ago
[deleted]
Kluggy 3y ago
I'd be fine with wage stagnation for awhile if I got a day back a week.
lapetitejort 3y ago
I suspect people will work two hours less on Monday-Wednesday and one hour less on Thursday and Friday. Meanwhile wage theft by way of "long lunch breaks" and "volunteer" hours will increase by eight hours per week.
- toomuchtodo 3y ago
  You simply keep applying force until the opposition fails. Structural demographics don’t hurt either [1] (perpetual labor shortages empowers labor [2]). You must start somewhere to anchor [3]; this bill is that anchor. You then pull with policy through a proverbial ratchet as politics and the zeitgeist allows (like entitlements, once the work week is reduced, it will be very hard, if not impossible, to go back). Mitch McConnell is retiring and the Affordable Care Act remains in place [4] [5], and the Inflation Reduction Act was passed. Good policy can both get done and be locked in. Time is the variable. [1] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=35549039 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=35549039 (citations) [2] https://archive.today/h1Oya https://archive.today/h1Oya [3] https://www.pon.harvard.edu/daily/negotiation-skills-daily/what-is-anchoring-in-negotiation/ https://www.pon.harvard.edu/daily/negotiation-skills-daily/w... [4] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Efforts_to_repeal_the_Affordable_Care_Act https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Efforts_to_repeal_the_Affordab... [5] https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/4527053-mcconnell-battle-to-repeal-affordable-care-act-largely-over/ https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/4527053-mcconnell-battle...
  - toomuchtodo 3y ago
    https://sloanreview.mit.edu/article/three-things-to-know-about-the-workplace-generation-gap/ https://sloanreview.mit.edu/article/three-things-to-know-abo... > A survey of 5,458 Americans that Bentley University recently conducted with Gallup shows that your own employees’ answers — their attitudes and expectations — might vary widely depending on the generational cohort. … > Everyone wants a four-day workweek. The survey asked what actions employers could take to increase employees’ well-being. The No. 1 answer was to offer a four-day 40-hour workweek in place of a five-day 40-hour workweek. Overall, 77% of respondents said this would improve their well-being. But among younger workers ages 18 to 29, a whopping 82% favored a shorter workweek. > That finding was presented to a group of 25 CEOs, none of whom saw a four-day workweek as viable. However, some companies that have participated in experiments with four-day 32-hour workweeks have seen good results for well-being and productivity and have made the change permanent. Older executives might not see employee wellness quite the same way as younger employees — and leaders who figure out how to successfully manage in ways that better support well-being might have a recruitment edge.
EPWN3D 3y ago
Salaried employees are exempt from overtime regulation, so I'm not sure how a provision saying "You can't cut salaries because of this bill" is any help. The bill doesn't impact salaried employees at all.
- jedberg 3y ago
  It wouldn’t be instant. But eventually Friday would be a weekend and people would no longer be expected to work on Fridays. Just like when the five day work week was passed.
m463 3y ago
wonder if it will push back on companies that only hire part-time workers

enlyth 3y ago

Feels like it would be worth it, at least eventually. Time is worth so much more than money

avarun 3y ago

The other issue is that most white collar careers are already considered overtime-exempt, so it doesn’t really matter if the cutoff is 32 hours or 40 hours. Given employment structure in the US a company can require you to work 100 hour weeks and the only thing employees can do is quit.

rvense 3y ago
IMO the real battle here is the cultural normalization of working 32 hours. The legal structure is just one part of it.
soupfordummies 3y ago
>> a company can require you to work 100 hour weeks and the only thing employees can do is quit. Or the employee can stick to the 32 and force the company to fire them.

deleted 3y ago

[deleted]

Kluggy 3y ago

I'd be fine with wage stagnation for awhile if I got a day back a week.

lapetitejort 3y ago

I suspect people will work two hours less on Monday-Wednesday and one hour less on Thursday and Friday. Meanwhile wage theft by way of "long lunch breaks" and "volunteer" hours will increase by eight hours per week.

toomuchtodo 3y ago
You simply keep applying force until the opposition fails. Structural demographics don’t hurt either [1] (perpetual labor shortages empowers labor [2]). You must start somewhere to anchor [3]; this bill is that anchor. You then pull with policy through a proverbial ratchet as politics and the zeitgeist allows (like entitlements, once the work week is reduced, it will be very hard, if not impossible, to go back). Mitch McConnell is retiring and the Affordable Care Act remains in place [4] [5], and the Inflation Reduction Act was passed. Good policy can both get done and be locked in. Time is the variable. [1] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=35549039 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=35549039 (citations) [2] https://archive.today/h1Oya https://archive.today/h1Oya [3] https://www.pon.harvard.edu/daily/negotiation-skills-daily/what-is-anchoring-in-negotiation/ https://www.pon.harvard.edu/daily/negotiation-skills-daily/w... [4] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Efforts_to_repeal_the_Affordable_Care_Act https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Efforts_to_repeal_the_Affordab... [5] https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/4527053-mcconnell-battle-to-repeal-affordable-care-act-largely-over/ https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/4527053-mcconnell-battle...
- toomuchtodo 3y ago
  https://sloanreview.mit.edu/article/three-things-to-know-about-the-workplace-generation-gap/ https://sloanreview.mit.edu/article/three-things-to-know-abo... > A survey of 5,458 Americans that Bentley University recently conducted with Gallup shows that your own employees’ answers — their attitudes and expectations — might vary widely depending on the generational cohort. … > Everyone wants a four-day workweek. The survey asked what actions employers could take to increase employees’ well-being. The No. 1 answer was to offer a four-day 40-hour workweek in place of a five-day 40-hour workweek. Overall, 77% of respondents said this would improve their well-being. But among younger workers ages 18 to 29, a whopping 82% favored a shorter workweek. > That finding was presented to a group of 25 CEOs, none of whom saw a four-day workweek as viable. However, some companies that have participated in experiments with four-day 32-hour workweeks have seen good results for well-being and productivity and have made the change permanent. Older executives might not see employee wellness quite the same way as younger employees — and leaders who figure out how to successfully manage in ways that better support well-being might have a recruitment edge.

EPWN3D 3y ago

Salaried employees are exempt from overtime regulation, so I'm not sure how a provision saying "You can't cut salaries because of this bill" is any help. The bill doesn't impact salaried employees at all.

jedberg 3y ago
It wouldn’t be instant. But eventually Friday would be a weekend and people would no longer be expected to work on Fridays. Just like when the five day work week was passed.

m463 3y ago

wonder if it will push back on companies that only hire part-time workers