The Congressional Progressive Caucus, the biggest bloc of liberal lawmakers in Congress, on Dec. 7 endorsed a bold bill proposed by Rep. Mark Takano, D-Calif., which would seek to implement a four-day workweek. It’s a measure that has no real prospect of becoming law in the near term, but it’s a compelling idea that’s garnering more attention worldwide — and it could serve as a potential point of focus for the American left in the future.
Shortening working hours has been a major point of focus for workers, both organized and unorganized, around the world for centuries. In the U.S. and Europe in the 19th century, wage workers often worked six or 6 days a week, and could endure brutal labor for 100 hours over the course of a week. In the early 20th century, the American organized labor movement successfully lobbied for an eight-hour workday, or a 40-hour workweek, based on the principle that workers deserve to divide their 24-hour days equally among rest, work and leisure.
But since then, efforts to shorten how much Americans work have largely stalled, work hours have crept up, and the U.S. has fallen behind peer countries. Americans work far, far more than people in most other affluent countries; from over here, France’s 35-hour workweek can seem like a ludicrous fantasy. And while Americans have zero legally guaranteed paid vacation days, many European countries require employers to provide their workers with several weeks of paid time off — Austria, for example, mandates...
The Government has launched an investigation into reports that migrants are being advised to make false claims in order to remain in the UK. It follows a BBC investigation that said increasing num...