Comments
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@bonja, I work as an IT for a software company. I don’t agree with your shorter hours theory. Sometimes I have deadlines and sometimes I have a moment where I can show my superiors how well I can do in bad conditions. I love work. Sometimes I go home and still work on the issue until early 1 am. Imagine if I said “hey I’m going home early and won’t fix this problem till next week.” That’s crazy. Nurses and Doctors and Firemen and Detectives looking for a Serial Killer should work less hours too.
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@MrTrivia, I mean thats your own specific circumstances and that's great that your like that. The point isnt to get time to slack off its about efficient work. Your point about doctors and stuff is kinda silly... its taking it to an extreme no ones saying in tough times people need to step up for those time periods. But long term its just going to lower productivity. I mean I could easily take it to the extreme too and say I don't want an overworked tired af surgeon cutting me open...
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@bonja, to counterpoint the Doctor crap, is that in order for you to become a doctor like a Neuro Surgeon you have to work hard. Long hours. Just to be one. And then you have to prove you’re a good neurosurgeon with additional work. It’s not an extreme. At all. In any job, you have to prove you’re good at it and nothing beats practice makes perfect. If I worked less hours I would not be where I am today and I would know and learn less. I would have less experience. And I would not have solved half the issues I’ve encountered in my career. Even with the hours I worked I still found leisure time. And I’m saving up so when I get older and plan ahead then hopefully I retire in a smart plan. I have worked labor, retail, restaurant bus boy, and a Chuck E. Cheese clone, and I learned a lot on each job. People. Structure. Experiences. Mistakes. And to think I would be the same person today if I had worked less hours is a terrible concept and perception.
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@MrTrivia, I mean your really not getting the poing here... I mean I've worked hard af in my life I remember doing 16 hours straight in a library day after day during my degree. I'm currently volunteering to do a new post helping organise & manage a team within social services because they are under crazy pressure with the circumstances leading to me doing above and beyond my normal hours. I'm not saying that like these 2 things for example should never happen... but if were to do this forever i'd burn myself out. I'd make mistakes its human health problems. Overworking is a major issue if you have a healthy balance that works for you that's great but pushing people too far like many businesses do just ends up with sick workers who end up costing more lost work hours than you gained by over-exerting them.
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@MrTrivia, if you had shorter hours you wouldnt be going home early though, and your deadlines as well as responsibilities would reflect that too. Also, the work forces are structured differently. Its not like there are then hours that are just not getting worked. Theyre just spread out more. And i think people would still probably have the option to work more hours if they wanted
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@bonja, I totally agree. The concept of a 40 hour work week was created by Henry Ford in the early 1900s and hasn't evolved since then. To his credit 40 hours back then was a big reduction from the status quo. My management philosophy was this : Here is the deadline. If you are meeting your goals I don't care what your schedule is. Most of my developers worked on average 4 days a week. Of course if they weren't meeting deadlines I would expect them to meet them. I did however make it priority number 1 to set realistic attainable deadlines. After working for a startup software company and working 60-80+ hour work weeks (at one point I had a cot in my office) I had had enough.
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@Funny Pics Janitor, and this is why American public education systems are designed & built upon the demands of productivity, assembly & manufacturing in general, but these industries have abandoned the culture of education to hire cheaper labor. And the US is not exactly exceptional when it comes to implementing STEM educations. Technological industries get the cream of the crop, not muscle in the middle, which is why the middle class is weakening.
I used to work for a multi-national company and the americans in the company were amazed how the europeans got same work done in less time. But it was nothing to do with "oh europeans are better workers", it was because the americans were being overworked and underperforming due to fatigue. Longer hours =/= better work. Studies show shorter weeks and more holidays make a more productive workforce. I know its not 100% on topic with this post but I just sympathise with our american brothers and sisters <3