So I've been thinking about which single measure could benefit employees the most, being realistic (no “seize all the means of productions!” nor “revolt!” stuff), and IMO I believe that a 4 day work week with full pay can be, if not the one, one of the most influential ones.
My reasoning goes as follows:
– We, the working class, end up exhausted after a week of >= 40h of selling our time and bodies to employers. Add to this taking care of your life (sleep, food, chores, cleaning, kids, etcetera), and little free, relaxed time remains.
– Exhaustion makes it easier to fall into short term pleasure binging, be it gaming binging, Netflix binging, drugs… Which at the end of the day does not change the situation.
– Having a 3rd full day for oneself will lead to people:
1) Sleeping more, having more time to cook, and to exercise: better health and happiness.
2) Have more time for family, friends and socialize: better health and happiness.
3) Having more time to cultivate oneself, reading, studying, and *organizing*.
The third one, in my opinion, is the one that can have exponential consequences. I want to believe that most of us are way aware of the problems of nowadays, but it is really hard to push back when you are drained after working 5 days a week.
Having the extra day then to rest, study (be it politics, be it climate science), and organize (unions, political parties, campaigns…) will make it easier to tackle the challenges and oppresions we are facing today.
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TLDR: A society without time is not a free society. A 4 day work week with full pay is, IMO, one of the main ways of advancing civilization.