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AirTalk

Why does 5 days x 8 hours = full time?

Alan Wilson, Director of James Ritchie & Son clockmakers, founded in 1809, adjusts a clock face to British Summer Time on March 26, 2010 in Edinburgh, Scotland.
Alan Wilson, Director of James Ritchie & Son clockmakers, founded in 1809, adjusts a clock face to British Summer Time on March 26, 2010 in Edinburgh, Scotland.
(
Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images
)
Listen 30:49
Why does 5 days x 8 hours = full time?
It’s a given: you’re supposed to work eight hours a day, five days a week, for a total of 40 hours—anything less is just not full time. Yet, fissures in this cultural norm are starting to show, accelerated by furloughs for state workers. While public employees were originally horrified by the loss of pay, some are now saying maybe it’s not such a bad thing. Could a four-day work week gain traction with more California businesses? And taking freelancers, telecommuters and workaholics into account, how many of us stick to the old nine to five anyway?

It’s a given: you’re supposed to work eight hours a day, five days a week, for a total of 40 hours—anything less is just not full time. Yet, fissures in this cultural norm are starting to show, accelerated by furloughs for state workers. While public employees were originally horrified by the loss of pay, some are now saying maybe it’s not such a bad thing. Could a four-day work week gain traction with more California businesses? And taking freelancers, telecommuters and workaholics into account, how many of us stick to the old nine to five anyway?

Guests:

Lauren Appelbaum, Research Director, Institute for Research on Labor and Employment at UCLA

John De Graaf, Executive Director of Take Back Your Time

Lloyd Chapman, President of the American Small Business League