Thread: Would you support 7 day work weeks?

Good idea or not?

Two Wisconsin lawmakers are pushing for a 7 day work week-to which they claim is on behalf of the state's largest business group: Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce.

When the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel followed up: WMC spokesman Jim Pugh who was questioned-has yet return messages.

Both legislators (Born & Grothman) stated: the idea was given to Republican legislator and not the Democratic side.
Born and Grothman also said businesses have employees who want to work the additional time. But when asked for names; said the only people they met with to discuss the bill were from WMC & not workers.

Sen. Glenn Grothman is from West Bend and Mark Born is from Beaver Dam.
Both are from 2 small suburban areas with small populations in Wisconsin. So I wonder have they spoken with employees from major cities like Green Bay, Milwaukee & Madison Wisconsin.

Their claim: this bill gives workers a way to make extra money and employers a way to boost production by way of volunteering to work 7 days. Democrats as expected- immediately opposed it. Their claim: employers would use the bill to force their employees to work longer and effectively erase the weekend-
Erase the idea for raises. Employees who leave-likely would see such positions go immigrants who are less likely to ask for raises let alone time off.

Current Wisconsin law requires employers to give their workers at least 24 consecutive hours off every seven days. Under Grothman and Born's proposal, workers could volunteer to work seven straight days without a rest day.

My take?
#1 How can the economy be so bad- if these corporations are churning out products 7 days of out of 7?
#2. A lot of companies have eliminated 40 hour work weeks down to 37.5
#3. A lot of companies have gone up to 12 hour work days on a 4 on 3 off basis. Then require mandatory rotation.

example: Quad Graphics bindery workers do mon-tue-wed 7am-7pm rotate sun.

The other shift does thur-fri-sat rotate sun.
(so one week is a 36 hour work week.
The other is 48 hours per week
BUT: because they rotate from days to night- every 6 weeks I think-- they lose that sunday meaning they put in more 36 hour work weeks than 48.

So if your 4th workday starts after the payperiod; then you can work 48 hours and not get the 8 hours overtime- because that 4th day- starts the next pay period.

Koch brothers who are backing Walker's bid for Potus do this now in many of the factories across many industries that they run. Same for their data center -I know I applied for them- then turned it down when the Human Resources chick tried to convince me- Because I will not work a standard 52 week calendar year- rather 46- it give me more time with family!! (smile)

More time to what? complain how Im missing money from a 46 work week calendar year as opposed to 52?
My point is- why would these very companies institute such rotation work weeks, decrease 40 hr. work weeks...

Then submit this? Am I missing something?

GOP lawmakers propose allowing 7-day work week in Wisconsin

I think it's stupid 5 days of work has been fair since Henry Ford gave us "the weekend" (he allowed 2 days off because Christians and Jews argued over which day was the Sabbath so he said "Alright take two and come in Monday")

Now as a co-owner of a small business I sometimes find myself working on the weekends, but that's just fine by me and it inconveniences no one.

Changing my own subject a bit- If I could extend my greatest 3 thread to the top 20- Henry would be there somewhere.


Hope I'm not being a revisionist- But I (think) Barry Gordy of Motown built his record company to mimmick certain aspects of Ford company.

Even had a QC division. where quality control makes sure each part is fit to go on a car. Barry had a department of people who listened to make sure the song was radio-worthy.

So Ford was one of the pioneers in giving us reboot of my mind time? aka weekend?
Ford was and is a heavy dude.

But I digress...

I wouldn't. People need time to breath and reboot. Seems it would be completely up to the individual business owner in an ideal world. Quality pay and production with adequate down time over quantity and depending on job type, leadership and environment..certain burn out and negative morale.

Fuck no, people will get depressed go insane and shoot people.

Managers will use it to exploit employees.

You want someone to work 7 days, you give them overtime hours for 2 days.

Expect Wisconsin to trail blaze on a few decisions. & the rest of the states to consider following. Walker is silent on the issue- almost as if to feel the mood of the people before he does speak on that which will come to his desk- yet fact is- the legislature here is moving full steam ahead.

There needs to be an option 'Fuck no!'

Bollocks to that. People should be working 2 days a week for the money they are pulling in. The system is all wrong and people are being treated like grazing cattle. They need to charge and aim for the balls.

A 3 day working week would be good bring back the unions 70's.

Originally Posted by Master

A 3 day working week would be good bring back the unions 70's.

I'm going partisan here: bare with me. For American Republicans who fancy a dude named Scott Walker-governor of Wisconsin- for the next Prez.... A lot of his campaign donations comes from a team of brothers; Koch brothers.

Their father made his millions in the 1930's under Stalin- check it out! They are now billionaires-
They own business across many industries- thus their business is called Koch (INDUSTRIES)
Well....They fund studies- that are done in what we call (think) tanks.

These studies - example 1. is that since the average American is living so much longer- these baby boomers- so many are ready to collect their social security- so the institutes that are the conduit for these thinkers- in the think tanks- release (findings)
suggesting that....
the retirement should be changed- from 65-67- now age 69 is being considered.
So the
Harry Bradley foundation (in Wisconsin) along with the Heritage Foundation and others- make these claims.<<----think tanks

Politicians who then receive funding- back these claims up and then run on them-when they campaign.

Long story short- the idea of a 7 day work week is instituted in the same fashion-
In fact many here in Wisconsin are doing what U suggest based on these studies- 3 day work weeks HOWEVER... the hours go up from 8-12 hours in a day.
One day rotation. Then they flip everyone's shift from the front end of the week to the back- and from days to nights.

So in the long run; some will work lesser hours- because the 36 hours work week -takes away 4 hours from the 40 standard. and switching shifts takes away that 48 hour work week- and I repeat myself- many companies now pay on Tuesdays, Wednesdays- as opposed to the traditional Friday.
What this does is allow 48 hours straight- without overtime because -if the 4th day is the start of a new pay period- then U get jack for o.t., how nice?

Quiet are the mainstream media and conservative media about who is behind this. Question? Why is that?

only if we make a week 14 days instead of 7

Get rid of unions, so they can get 5 days worth of work out of these people.

If there was some type of shift differential (maybe like a 10% premium) attached to the standard pay on the weekends, I'd be okay with it.
Also, only on a voluntary basis. You'd be surprised how many would jump at it.

Originally Posted by Beanflicker

Get rid of unions, so they can get 5 days worth of work out of these people.

You must be a American. Only a American would take it straight up the ass and think it's a good thing. The fact is the American worker works harder and longer hours than the western world. Also the U.S. out produces any country for less money. So the answer is to work more fucking hours? Unions build this Country and made it great. Only 7% of the US belong to Unions. What I'm taking about is your freedom and how fast it can be taken away.

What this means in reality is that bosses can force workers to work seven days and get rid of ones who won't. It's just another in a series of pro-capital anti-labour laws passed by a state Governor who is bought and paid for by a couple of billionaire fossil fuel magnates. It should not be allowed.

What is important is output per hour worked, not number of hours worked. For instance, French workers produce more in their 35 hour workweek than American workers do in 47. But increased productivity means increased investment and training in/of labour by business. It's cheaper just to force people to work long hours and deny them the right to organise so you can pay them as little as possible.