lezzyharpy:

lezzyharpy:

this is petty but i dont like arguments for shorter work weeks that start by saying the 40 hour work week is “outdated” cuz it makes it sound like the 40 hour work week was ever necessary in the first place and is only unnecessary now because of advances weve made

the 40 hour work week was never necessitated by technology or organizational methods, high hour work weeks were mandated by bosses trying to squeeze out as much profit as possible out of each worker, and it only went DOWN to 40 hours because of workers organizing and fighting for it

if we are to lower the number of hours again, it will be because of organizing and fighting again, NOT because technology has suddenly made it possible

technology DOES help lower the amount of work needed, but bosses dont give a shit about that and they will work you more than needed regardless unless you fight

people working construction jobs, farmhand jobs, food laborer jobs dont have 60-80 (or more) hour weeks because thats an inherent reality of those jobs, they have those hours because theyre grossly exploited….

like thats the point

the way our labor is distributed in society now is not the way it has to be

theres nothing mandating this except bosses wringing every shred of their employees time out of them because they CAN for profit

farm work, construction work, manual labor work, nothing about this necessitates that anyone working those jobs HAS to be exploited

like i generally try to avoid totalizing statements, but i will gladly say this one: nobody SHOULD have to work 60-80 hour weeks. ever. there is no good reason