>Perhaps the concept of full time work needs to change the most.
This. We're at a point where many jobs could be done in 15-20 hours a week, but we require everyone to punch in and out like it's a factory.
I live in flyover country, and work in higher education. I have exempt staff. Some weeks they have 2 hours worth of work, some weeks they have 70. But, because the cultural norm is that you can't be productive unless you're filling seats from 8-5, they waste 38 hours some weeks, and don't meet the requirements of the extra 30 others.
It's just outrageous, and I don't understand it. This is 2020. It's the real future now. Let's grow up as a society.
The problem is everytime someone seems to discuss shorter work hours or work weeks, they also ship in a pay cut as well. If I can he equally as productive in 4 hours as I am in 8 hours as a salaried employee, why should I be paid less?
I agree with you, you shouldn't be paid less. The problem is in larger companies rarely are you paid according to the value you create. Mostly likely as a developer your "cost" is how much the hiring manager would need to pay for the next best equivalent worker.
I'm questioning if we're paid according to how productive we are. The more steps there are between you and revenue the less likely this seems to be true.
Because you aren't really paid based on hard results in large companies, the 8 hours becomes more about posturing than actually delivering the results.
I'm open to other ideas. I desperately want to work 20 hours a week instead of 40. I'm trying to better understand why we're stuck at 40.
One very great place to start fixing this would be all "benefits" being public.
Public healthcare (as a baseline for any luxury private care to beat).
Public vacation / family leave (pooling the liability, seniority, and policies in to a common system).
In this way the funding for these benefits becomes taxes and their distribution disconnected from the employment at any particular business, as well as from the business paying any particular employee.
I'm unsure if this would lead to an increase in socialization and not just a lot of people in their own houses playing video games and watching Netflix.
I think it would lead to an increase in socialization. I am unable to join service leagues or social organizations because the 4-5 hours between work and sleep at night are precious to me and my family. If I did not have that thought hanging over my head, I would volunteer more or just go do social things more in a formal setting.
I think this is really up to the individual, when I "work from home", I frequently go to artsy cafes around my city to be surrounded with people who are doing different things to get some human interaction (and maybe feel a bit younger than I do sitting behind a desk).
This. We're at a point where many jobs could be done in 15-20 hours a week, but we require everyone to punch in and out like it's a factory.
I live in flyover country, and work in higher education. I have exempt staff. Some weeks they have 2 hours worth of work, some weeks they have 70. But, because the cultural norm is that you can't be productive unless you're filling seats from 8-5, they waste 38 hours some weeks, and don't meet the requirements of the extra 30 others.
It's just outrageous, and I don't understand it. This is 2020. It's the real future now. Let's grow up as a society.