Bernie Sanders unveils 32-hour workweek bill with no loss in pay for workers
Bernie Sanders unveils 32-hour workweek bill with no loss in pay for workers
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) on Wednesday introduced a bill to establish a standard four-day workweek in the United States without any reduction in pay. The bill, over a four-year period, would lowe…
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I like this as a concept, and since it has a low likelihood of passing, let a lone being bought up for a vote, i feel comfortable casting this critique:
We need a long-term solution that addresses the power imbalance of employer-employee relations, and all this does is places a temporary and incremental improvement on something that will inevitably be undermined.
I have a similar critique on minimum wage laws - while undeniably better for working class people, they fail to address the broader inequity and end up needing to be updated every couple years (which never happens).
This is one of those moments where I really wish Bernie would put a finer point on it - this is an issue driven by capital. The federal government wouldn't need to spell out labor laws if they could strengthen the working-class's position against capital more broadly. I would almost rather him propose a bill that strengthens union laws and the NLRB, since those are currently under attack.
I'd like to think this actually gets some consideration though. Totally agree with your points, but let's be honest: Once you start calling it like it is and openly blaming Capital, your career in American politics is dust.
Somehow Bernie has managed to have quite a career, in spite of constant opposition by the status quo machine.