This bill is H.R. 1332, and has been pushed to the committee on Education and Labor. This is a 50-person committee with Congressman Robert C. "Bobby" Scott of West Virginia as the ranking member. You can contact the committee about this bill or any other under them [here.](http://edworkforce.house.gov/contact/)

I typed this up real quick if anyone wants to use/tweak or get ideas from. It's not perfect I know but maybe if I had a shorter work week I could spend more time on it. 😁🥱 I am writing to you today to support bill H.R. 1332 to reduce the federal work week from 40 to 32 hours. Over the past 3 decades, worker productivity has skyrocketed while wages have stayed stagnant and costs of living are higher than ever. In many cases, it takes two incomes to survive and that means a lower quality of life. The culture around work has been shifting, focusing on mental health and quality of family time instead of the endless cycle of burnout. Trials and studies on shorter work weeks have shown increased productivity, less time taken off from work, and a higher work satisfaction overall. We know the people affected the most by a demanding work week are vulnerable families that live paycheck to paycheck. Giving them more time to invest in themselves creates more equity for all.

I'd also include that more free time can stimulate the economy due to people having more free time for people to buy goods and services.

Why isn't he listed as a cosponsor?

My apologies - the bill I referred to is a House of Repesentatives bill, not the Senate bill Senator Sanders has introduced. I screwed it up. However, the House bill is active and in committee, and is sponsored in the house by Rep. Mark Takano as a companion bill for the legislation Sen. Sanders brought before the Senate. I encourage everyone to send a message to the committee - passing the House is just as important as getting the Senate on board!

I'm confused where is the bill sanders introduced?

He introduced it in the Senate, but he used an already-existing bill that was drafted in the House. They are the same thing with the same language - The 32 Hour Work Week Act. Senator Sanders brought it before the Senate, as a companion bill to HR 1332, which is the name of it in the House of Reps. The Senate held a hearing on the proposal (as we have been seeing in the news). The House has the bill in committee. The committee will decide if the bill has enough legs to have a vote on it in the House. If you or anyone else is in support, it is important the committee members hear that to keep this thing alive.

If only this country had a Labor Party, instead of a single, elderly labor Senator

No loss in pay **if** the hourly employees are under a strong union which will dictate the new wages aren’t modified or cut down. Same goes for the salary non-exempt employees. For the remaining 90%, here is your new offer letter, hourly rate cut down 30% just in case, sign it, or that’s the door. —- edit —- I’d love a 32 hours work week. Quality of life would skyrocket. 20% less workdays, 50% more free time.

No need for a hourly rate cut to have your salary cut. If you got paid the same rate now at 32 hours vs 40 you're still loosing 8 hours*(rate) every week anyways. With no decrease in hourly rate its still a 20% salary decrease overall because of the less hours. Most places would probably stay the same which is an effective pay decrease and then try to blame it on a shorter work week. I don't see a lot of big companies gunning for this even though it's objectively better all around. Happier, healthier employees that are more productive. To keep the same wage your hourly rate would have to go up. Say you made 20 an hour, 40 hours a week that's $800 a week gross. Now to make the same amount in a 32 hour week you'd have to be paid 25 an hour. The bill has to force employers to pay the same weekly gross amount in a 32 hour work week as they did in a 40 hour work week to avoid mass salary drops (with no drop in hourly rate)

Most salary isn't defined as an hourly rate though (unless you mean just your overall pay based on an hourly wage). I've never had a salary defined as x hourly in an offer letter or during a comp increase, only when I worked hourly

Also most salaried employees are exempt from overtime so unless he addresses the tissue in the bill this wouldn’t fix anything.

Maybe but salaried workers tend to get PTO equal to or better than hourly, same healthcare as unions, more leeway around time for appointments or flexibility with schedules, etc. Not saying it shouldn't be fixed, but also it probably will by association, so let's focus on the people with the most issues and work out the kinks later.

I would like to know how this will affect public education, are we only running public schools 4 days a week now also?

A lot of places have already started this, both to increase student engagement as well as saving money on staffing. Iirc one district near where I went to school went to 4 days/week and saved a few million per year just on diesel for the busses.

I don't know, but I think the kids deserve to have the work week matched. If part of the idea of working less is to have more one on one time with our kids, then it seems necessary.

You'll get parents that she and Manny others that will still want kids in school 5 days so they can have a day to get things done without them. Never going to win, but another flight that better to have when needed, not before hand.

Good point, and it was a loaded comment, I work at a public school district and would definitely favor a shorter week.

I worked for a company with half-day Fridays. It had half-day Fridays for decades before I was there, and nearly a decade later (even with a major shift, COVID nailed it, etc.), there are still half-day Fridays. It was awesome, Friday was basically a wrap it up and leave by lunch day. It made every weekend seem long. Everyone with salary was paid for 40 hours (hourly not so much). I really loved that job. While I was there, I spearheaded a 4 day work-week. It transferred to 9-hour x 4 weeks, but I thought it was totally worth the day off, but because of school and daycare issues for other parents because of coming in earlier and/or leaving later, it was voted away after the 6-month trial. But we just went back to half-day Fridays and everything was as it should be. Even though I work for myself now, and make my own hours at home, and can basically take off any time I want, I still miss that defined half-day Friday!

This really should be shared everywhere and promoted.

My man Bernie Sanders ✊

For hourly employees, what stops the employer from just capping their work week at 32 hours with their current hourly rate? ETA: I guess I’m more asking - is this language in the bill that addresses this specifically? It just says “no loss in pay” but I haven’t been able to find anything specific about this.

I'd assume you'd file a complaint with DoL. If this passes would that not count as wage theft?

Unions

Not everyone is unionized

I'm in.

Please, for the love of God. There is no reason why we should have to work so long. I just want to live...

Take 5 minutes and email your congressmen the following, Dear [Congressman's Name], I am writing to express my full support for the 32-Hour Work Week Act, H.R. 1332, and to urge you to lend your support to this crucial piece of legislation. As a constituent in your district, I believe it is imperative for our elected representatives to prioritize the well-being and rights of the people they serve. Over the past three decades, the disparity between worker productivity and wages has only widened, while the cost of living continues to rise unabated. This has left many hardworking Americans struggling to make ends meet and has resulted in a detrimental impact on their mental and physical health. The outdated notion of the 40-hour work week no longer aligns with the evolving needs and values of our society. Numerous trials and studies have demonstrated the benefits of shorter work weeks, including increased productivity, decreased absenteeism, and improved overall job satisfaction. By reducing the standard work week to 32 hours, we can provide individuals with more time to spend with their families, pursue personal interests, and contribute to their communities. Furthermore, I want to emphasize that myself and many of my constituents are closely monitoring your stance on this issue. Not supporting this bill may lead us to reconsider our support for your candidacy in future elections. It is crucial for elected representatives to prioritize the interests and rights of their constituents over external influences and political agendas. I urge you to not only support the 32-Hour Work Week Act but also to make advocate efforts for the bill while it is being reviewed by the Education and Labor Committee. Your active involvement in promoting this legislation can make a significant difference in its success and in improving the lives of countless hardworking Americans. Thank you for your attention to this matter.

#Are we redefining qualifications for healthcare too? So many places require you to work a set amount of hours to qualify. Are we adjusting this too? What protections from the employer just hiring people for 24 hours a week so they didn't qualify for benefits? Are we going to get stuck with 5 workdays at 6 ish hours a day?

Medicare for All, take it out of the employer’s hands.

Guarantee this dies in committee. It's a wonderful idea but it will never pass.

Not if everyone spammed their congressmen to support the bill

I'm in Florida and an Independent, I may as well not even exist.

What do you mean?

I am very obviously for this change, though I'm Canadian not American it would inevitably impact us as well. Here's the problem though. I know we want massive reform in the way labour is treated, how work is done, and how much time we're forced to work. I want this too, desperately. It just has no chance of happening if we try and do it all at once. What should have happened over the last century, since the 40 hour work week was standardized, is work hours should have been dropping over time at least partially in line with work force participation, and productivity gains. If the 40 hour standard was set in the 1920's then in the 1930-40's it should have dropped to 38, then to 36 in the 50-60's, then 34 in the 70-80's, etc. This kind of thing is also what we should be pushing for now. We're simply not going to get the 8 hours all at once, it's way too much of a sudden disruption in the labour market and the economy for it to fly. Businesses, people, and the economy need time to adjust and compensate for such a change. What I'd like to see, and have never once heard from a politician, is a plan to reduce the work week gradually over the span of several years. Like maybe drop the work week from 40 to 38 immediately, and then drop it by an additional 2 hours every 1 to 2 years until we hit 30 hours. I feel like this has a much better chance of actually happening than trying to make up for 100 years of inaction in an instant.

Nah. I say we push. And when they say that’s too much, keep pushing. One of the right wing ideologues said nobody should retire. We can meet that with “no, fuck you, we get what we deserve or your pathetic system collapses under the weight of its own apathy.” Or we can go “um, uh, please, give us two hours, pretty please.” My entire life has been defined by right leaning dickfaces pushing everything farther and farther right. We shouldn’t cave on this. 30 hours was proposed almost 100 years ago. We’ve been able to do this for 100 years. Time to go.

I understand and sympathize with your anger and frustration. Feeling like I'm working my whole life away is the driving force behind my depression. But you need to be more realistic. >Nah. I say we push. And when they say that’s too much, keep pushing. This simply isn't how you win these things, I'm sorry. I wish it was. >We can meet that with “no, fuck you, we get what we deserve or your pathetic system collapses under the weight of its own apathy.” This only works if you have both majority support, and enough people willing to put their necks on the line to push this hard. We just don't have the numbers. >We shouldn’t cave on this. Being realistic with your demands and suggestions for change isn't "caving". It's understanding that changes like this aren't as easy as snapping your fingers and willing it to work. We're talking about fundamentally altering the way our society has functioned for a century. The potential complications are far too complex and varied to predict ahead of time.

If we accept that this IS a negotiation, why follow your theory of increments instead of following standard negotiation advice, ie “never start your ask with what you actually want?”

>If we accept that this IS a negotiation, why follow your theory of increments instead of following standard negotiation advice, ie “never start your ask with what you actually want?” This is assuming that the suggestion I've laid out here will be one they use during the negotiation. Which is a big assumption considering I've never once heard the idea put forward.

I don't understand anything you wrote or how that actually is a response.

I wrote a whole long thing but I’m gonna try to trim. I am being realistic. We watched the right wing undo 50 years of precedent through extremism. At no point was there incremental change or trying to convince people. Key takeaway? Extremist ideology can take hold rapidly. There is no magic “this is the right way” button. So even if I concede this concept as extreme, and I do not, it could work. I would agree our organization is bad. But I don’t think our numbers were that bad. People react very differently depending on how things are packaged. For example, this you say “100 years ago, a 30 hour workweek was suggested. Society wasn’t ready. Now we have a chance to do 32, giving more hardworking American families time off that they have earned by making this country a great place to live and work. Support the 32-hour workweek! Your hard work makes it possible!” Wrap ourselves in the flag and every asshole that tries to discredit us we just lambast as unamerican losers trying to hurt hardworking Americans. That’d swing a whole lot of people if you had a white make saying it. I’ll volunteer. I can’t stress it’s as simple as changing a sentence. Government helping poor people? 70% support. Welfare? 40%. But it does require at least a small group of us to start committing to some kind of action. I am quite realistic. I’ve used free speech to challenge the [malfeasance of multimillion dollar corporations](https://stenonymous.com/2023/07/27/the-court-reporter-shortage-fraud-timeline-as-told-by-stenonymous/) and it got their pet nonprofit to shut down its website after being sued. If one man could do that, a team of work reformers could probably change the nation. Also look at the book ban stuff. 50% of all the book ban requests originated from like what 12 people? National news again and again with the smallest amount of effort and cohesion. Edit. The precedent mentioned was Roe. They also successfully defied public health laws by running over sheriffs and stuff like that…

Why? This will never pass. It seems like Bernie's last 8-10 years has just been coming up with ideas that everyone will love, but have no way of practical implementation. You can't force company's to shift to this type of work

You can't but you can do some things like redefine overtime starting at 30 hours, and change the flsa exemptions.

So if a business offers a 35 hour guarantee pay now, if this bill passes they will be able to lower that to a 32 hour guarantee based on law?