Post B2ntqlwWgPQJdmsBF2 by ChrisMayLA6@zirk.us
 (DIR) More posts by ChrisMayLA6@zirk.us
 (DIR) Post #B2ntqlwWgPQJdmsBF2 by ChrisMayLA6@zirk.us
       2026-01-30T06:32:59Z
       
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       There's a growing suspicion that even where managers & employers have not formally adopted a four day week, the incidence of slack Fridays is growing across the workforce... measured by footfall in retail & use of leisure facilities, there are a growing number who do not seem to be at work *all* Friday.The flexibility of working from home has enhanced the self-management of the working week for many.As so often rubbish managers are confronted with organic resistance - good!#workers h/t FT
       
 (DIR) Post #B2ntqnGPlwvVjlBZse by h4890@alive.bar
       2026-01-30T07:43:53Z
       
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       @ChrisMayLA6 This is the truth! If people were to work effectively, yes, we would indeed see a 4 day work week, or even a 3 day one. I do not doubt this at all. On the other hand, we are not made to work 100% effectively, so enforcing 4 days, will just reduce the effective time worked down to 2 or 2.5 days, and society will lose a lot of money that way. I find it incomprehensible that politicians see the need to regulate how much someone wants to work at all. Surely, that must be one of the more idiotic trends in socialism today.
       
 (DIR) Post #B2nxr0tVUh4TpOpaqG by ChrisMayLA6@zirk.us
       2026-01-30T08:28:44Z
       
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       @h4890 Its an interesting issue; as you suggest nowadays it does look odd to be trying to mandate a four day working week when actually organically its happening... but historically, left to its own devices capitalism has a tendency to abuse workers, in the C19th countered by the collective organisation of labour (now in decline, perhaps for some seen as less needed)
       
 (DIR) Post #B2ocWOfU0M1jbIYkTI by h4890@alive.bar
       2026-01-30T16:04:24Z
       
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       @ChrisMayLA6 I would also, in an attempt to view both sides of the argument, highlight a point which I think is not very often brought up. Often in these discussions, the left wants to "force" companies to work less, which damages tax revenue and society, and the right wants to let companies work as much as they like. However! First, as you pointed out, there's the organic shift. The length of the work week is becoming a bargaining chip in salary negotiations with companies, just like fully remote work has become. Many people are willing to sacrifice some amount of monthly salary in order to work 3 or 4 days a week, or go fully remote. The second point is that many people fear working less. Peopel will become bored, unhappy, etc. The thing is, when we went from 7 to 6 day, there was much rejoicing. When we went from 6 to 5 days, again, there was much rejoicing and very little weeping. Likewise, when we organically move from 5 to 4 I am certain, there will be much rejoicing. What I do _not_ know, and what I am curious about, is if there's a happy minimum. Probably this depends on the person, the society at large, and the job.
       
 (DIR) Post #B2ocxo0Tu7L80QS0a8 by ChrisMayLA6@zirk.us
       2026-01-30T16:09:21Z
       
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       @h4890 Its a good Q.; the happy medium is unlikely t be the same for everyone, but I think it likely that an absence of meaningful work is not what people necessarily want - they want work the balances with the rest of their life well *and* is 'meaningful' for the most part
       
 (DIR) Post #B2pIcH5tH30dvFOelk by h4890@alive.bar
       2026-01-30T23:56:07Z
       
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       @ChrisMayLA6 I think meaning is key here. With meaning, it stops being work, and becomes a vocation. Once you have that... the question of how many hours to work becomes irrelevant.