If I didn't have to answer email or deal with any middle management, this could work. But the paradox is that the only scenario in which legitimate optimal efficiency can be attained is in a small-group, highly-communicative environment (like a startup); in that kind of environment, you're putting in 80-hour weeks so you can get profitable as quickly as possible, so there's no way anyone is saying "I've put in my 25 hours, see you guys next week!"
We should only work 25 hours a week, argues professor
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Re: We should only work 25 hours a week, argues professor
#12This is interesting. I live in Indonesia, where except on our capital (Jakarta and most Java), working 60 hours a week is the norm. I have noticed (and I think this has been proved over and over again) that people who works 60 hours a week is actually less productive and less happy than those who have a free weekends and work only 8 hours a day. I wonder how much working time can we cut until the benefits disappear.
>>>working 60 hours a week is the norm
What kind of labor is that? White collar or factory assembly?
Re: We should only work 25 hours a week, argues professor
#13I don't get it. Why we have fixed number of working hours when we have deadlines for our tasks?
You want me to solve that problem for you by Friday? Why should I come to office and stare at monitor four days if I figured it out right in Monday?
Re: We should only work 25 hours a week, argues professor
#14That would be nice, then startups where people work 80 a week will be even more magical and money earning. :)
Re: We should only work 25 hours a week, argues professor
#15Great idea in theory, but there's a reason young people work such long hours: money. If a 22 year old graduates from college and works 25 hours a week, they won't have enough money to pay off their (almost certain) debt and live comfortably, much less have excess money to spend traveling and doing fun things. Young people work so hard so they can have the money to buy and do the things they want. Most just never stop working that hard in order to enjoy those things.
Working 25 hours/week would basically push "life" back a few years, meaning maybe you rent a small apartment and drive a old car until you're 35-40.
As they saying goes, young people have lots of time and no money, but older people have lots of money and no time.
Re: We should only work 25 hours a week, argues professor
#16Until we come to grips with what will likely be a post-labor world, this is a good transitional approach. The 40 hour week is an arbitrary standard, and it may now be rational to reduce that number. Few jobs are now so arduous that 70 year olds cannot perform well. We are suffering from outdated standards for work weeks and retirement age, and un-sticking our assumptions is likely to benefit the situation.
> Few jobs are now so arduous that 70 year olds cannot perform well. I think it's mostly physical jobs that 70 year olds cannot perform well. And that kind of job can be automated by robots anyway. For job like programming or CEO, I kind of think that 70 year olds can do better than say 20 year olds.
Mental acuity is very much a physical quality. Yes, there are 70 year olds who can think and mentally adapt exceptionally well, just as there are 70 year olds who can do one arm push-ups and live till 100. But it doesn't mean that 70 year old are just like 30 year olds, but with more experience.
Re: We should only work 25 hours a week, argues professor
#1725 hours to earn less? What's the point of having more free time if you have no money to do anything with it ?
There's a reason why we have a current optimal 40-60 hours kind of range for working hours in most countries. That's an equilibrium point between how much people are willing to work vs how much they are willing to earn. Everyone still wants to have free time, but not at the expense of their well-being or the future of their family (education, etc.).
Working 25 hours and earning the same amount as working 40 would not sit well with companies (if this was made mandatory by state regulation, for example). Local companies would lose their competitive edge vs other companies elsewhere and this would end up in increased unemployment.
Let people work how long they want. That's their choice.
Re: We should only work 25 hours a week, argues professor
#18Great idea in theory, but there's a reason young people work such long hours: money. If a 22 year old graduates from college and works 25 hours a week, they won't have enough money to pay off their (almost certain) debt and live comfortably, much less have excess money to spend traveling and doing fun things. Young people work so hard so they can have the money to buy and do the things they want. Most just never stop…
Not every country saddles their young graduates with tens (to hundreds!) of thousands of dollars in debt.
Re: We should only work 25 hours a week, argues professor
#19That would be nice, then startups where people work 80 a week will be even more magical and money earning. :)
Except that there's no guarantee that working more hours makes you more productive. If anything, studies seem to have shown the opposite. Ultimately, efficiency trumps hard work--there are only so many hours in a week where the limit on your efficiency is much further away.
Re: We should only work 25 hours a week, argues professor
#2025 hours to earn less? What's the point of having more free time if you have no money to do anything with it ? There's a reason why we have a current optimal 40-60 hours kind of range for working hours in most countries. That's an equilibrium point between how much people are willing to work vs how much they are willing to earn. Everyone still wants to have free time, but not at the expense of their well-being or the…
Because of standardization on "normal" workweeks, it's pretty hard to have the choice even if you're willing to forego salary for fewer hours. Google won't let you work a 4-day week for 80% of the regular salary, for example (or even for 60% of it!), and more traditional companies are even less likely to. You take their 5-day, 40-hour offer or you don't. You typically only have an option to work a 25-hour week if you have either a consulting/freelance career, or a very low-end hourly-wage job.