(RepublicanWire.org) – Sen. Bernie Sanders is calling for the standard work week to be shortened from five days to four days.
On Tuesday, Sanders said that technological advancements allow for less labor from workers, but are currently only used to pad the pockets of corporate executives.
“With exploding technology and increased worker productivity, it’s time to move toward a four-day work week with no loss of pay,” he wrote. “Workers must benefit from technology, not just corporate CEOs.”
The senator shared an article detailing the results of a four-day work week trial that was recently run in the U.K. The six-month trial consisted of 61 companies and organizations, encompassing around 3,000 workers.
Sanders further elaborated on his stance on shortening the work week in a CBS News interview on Sunday. The current “revolution” in technology puts millions of workers at risk of losing their jobs, while executives are able to hoard even more wealth, he said.
In terms of technology, “we’re talking about a transformational moment throughout the world and the United States. I want working people to be involved,” he said.
“If there is a technology that can increase worker productivity, who benefits from that? Just the guy who owns the company? Or does the worker benefit?” he continued. “So if we can reduce the workweek, is that a bad thing? It’s a good thing. But I don’t want to see the people on top simply be the only beneficiaries of this revolution in technology.”
Labor unions and even corporate groups have said that a four-day work week could soon become standard. In an Ernst & Young survey in 2022, 40 percent of companies surveyed about the “future of work” said they either already have a four-day work week or are working toward implementing one.
The 40-hour, five-day work week wasn’t always the standard for a full-time worker in the U.S. — in the 1800s, it was typical for workers to work six or all seven days of the week, with extremely long work days. Thanks to labor unions, however — and their famous May Day strike — the U.S. work day was shortened to eight hours in the late 1800s. Congress later shortened the standard work week to 40 hours, spread over five days, in 1940.
