317
Germany explores 4-day workweek amid labor shortage
(www.dw.com)
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
view the rest of the comments
this post was submitted on 02 Feb 2024
317 points (97.9% liked)
Uplifting News
11294 readers
474 users here now
Welcome to /c/UpliftingNews, a dedicated space where optimism and positivity converge to bring you the most heartening and inspiring stories from around the world. We strive to curate and share content that lights up your day, invigorates your spirit, and inspires you to spread positivity in your own way. This is a sanctuary for those seeking a break from the incessant negativity often found in today's news cycle. From acts of everyday kindness to large-scale philanthropic efforts, from individual achievements to community triumphs, we bring you news that gives hope, fosters empathy, and strengthens the belief in humanity's capacity for good.
Here in /c/UpliftingNews, we uphold the values of respect, empathy, and inclusivity, fostering a supportive and vibrant community. We encourage you to share your positive news, comment, engage in uplifting conversations, and find solace in the goodness that exists around us. We are more than a news-sharing platform; we are a community built on the power of positivity and the collective desire for a more hopeful world. Remember, your small acts of kindness can be someone else's big ray of hope. Be part of the positivity revolution; share, uplift, inspire!
founded 1 year ago
MODERATORS
I do fuck all most days. Maybe 2 hrs a day. It wasn't always like this, I used to work a solid 40hr week, but as I've settled into my role, I've made vast efficiency improvements. Im not doing less work, Im just very fast at doing it.
There are moments, of course, when some part of a project derails, and then I spend 6 hours straight investigating some weird minor anomaly, but those are getting rarer as I phase out old projects that I inherited.
Are you in a tech related field? I feel like if I tried that at my butcher job they would assign me even more work.
It’s really only office jobs that get this sort of luxury.
I don‘t see how smaller shifts at the same pay wouldn‘t work in virtually every industry. What‘s so different about a butcher, carpenter or taxi driver compared to a store clerk who works half time already? In terms of organizing I mean. There isn‘t a professional that isn‘t affected by ever developing automation processes. At least indirectly, but only the rich get to reap it‘s benefits for as long as I live. It‘s time to change that and a universal 30 hour work week is a good start.
If you let your office worker who only works effectively fo 30 hours go after these, instead of having a shitshat coffee for 2 hours every day at the office, you still get the same result.
If you let your butcher go after 30 hours you need to hire another one, because you need a butcher there during opening hours.
Indeed.
I'd even say it was once the natural way. As you got better/faster at a task, you absolutely got more free time and less work fixing mistakes, too.
If members of a hunter/gatherer community got better/faster, they had more time to do other things. That would still be true if money wasn't the direct goal of all: if a tailor/carpenter/dentist/etc. does a better, more permanent job, they have less work fixing and repairing and get a better reputation.
Only when you manufacture for sheer output and/or your employer's sole interest is to squeeze maximum value out of you is our relationship to work perverted into the now common "the faster you work, the faster you receive more work."
Only time I heard about anybody asking for a 4 day work week recently was the GDL strike. So while I agree, it’s probably more of a tech thing, there are blue collar jobs fighting for it.