What happened to the 40 hour work week?

Question

What happened to worker rights? Why do ceos get to enjoy corporate welfare while the rest of us work hard with minimal incentives and opportunities? What happened to the 40 hour work week and good benefits?

Answer 1

The Republicans happened. Now you have to work 2 jobs just to make ends meet. Meanwhile the rich are getting richer and not paying taxes. Vote Dem in Nov.

Answer 2

What happened is that people in the US started demanding too much from their employers. They asked for higher and higher wages while the public screamed and screamed for lower prices. What do you get? A worse company to work for that pay's less and less to keep up their profit while still maintaining a low cost to the public. The main problem is, there will always be someone willing to work cheaper than you. You know it, and your bosses sure as hell know it, so they can take advantage of the situation.

Is it fair? Yes and no.

You could, for example, join a union, in which case they will fight for your rights and fight to get you higher rate of pay.

In the meantime, the company will lose money because other companies without unions can charge far less for their products than your company can, because it has to meet the demands of the union.

Take for example GM... the union there, specifically the UAW here in MI, demanded that one gentleman at the Delphi plant in Saginaw MI (Near my home) gets paid 26.00 / hour. His job? He puts a screw into a seat belt assembly once every 45 seconds. Sure, he has to stand there all day, not too fun I don't doubt, but 26.00 an hour?

And then people complain that GM's are too pricy and go with much lower priced automobiles. So what happened? Delphi ended up getting rid of a giant portion of their workforce.

So yes, it might not be a great thing, but at least you've got a job and if your company can pay you a bit less and work you a bit more, they will stay in business and you won't lose your job.

All evens out in the end. The delphi and the UAW got exactly what they deserved.

P.s. I used to work for Schwans.. you know, the ice cream people? They expected me to leave home at 8:00 am to get to work by 8:45, work from 9 am until 10 - 11 pm, drive home, go to bed, get up at 7 and start all over again. I sometimes put in over 80 hours a week. I earned less than 500.00 a week at this job because it was all comission based. I left that place after a mere 8 months.

Answer 3

FDR's "New Deal" introduced the "overtime penalty" to get employers to hire more people. Employers had to pay time and a half to workers who worked over 40 hours in a work week. FDR "encouraged" many states to apply the penalty to hours worked over 8 in a one day period (California still does). The idea was to encourage businesses to stay open longer and produce more. Adding an afternoon shift, also allowed 24/7 businesses a way to avoid the overtime penalty.

Answer 4

Yes it does suck. Salary is the biggest con of all time. However, think of the time before workers rights, when people worked in asbestos, lead, and other types of hazerdous environments and there were no laws for worker protection. Also think of people who would work 12 hours a day for like five cents a day in old times. It does suck, but I believe it is a little better than the alternative. Then again France gets like 6 vacation weeks a year by law, because they realize there is more to LIVING than work.

Answer 5

It is the shift in corporate America. Companies are all doing it. They do not replace people as they retire, leave or are termed. My company cut the workforce by 25% and told everyone left that their workload will increase by about 1/3 per person. Oh, and with no extra pay.

Known fact that companies are showing higher profits these days with a smaller workforce.

Answer 6

I wish I only had to work 40 hours!I run my own 2 businesses,and part time at a family members' also!

Answer 7

SOUNDS LIKE CAPITALISM, AS CONTRADICTORY AS THIS MAY SOUND, I HIGHLY RECOMMEND SOME RESEARCH ON THE "COMMUNIST MANIFESTO.

The slave plantation of old, for many, TODAY is the work place. There is a reason behind the name change from THE PERSONAL DEPARTMENT to the DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN RESOURCES. FIND OUT IF YOUR STATE IS A "AT WILL EMPLOYMENT STATE".

http://www.age-of-the-sage.org/philosophy/communist_manifesto.html

http://hrsbstaff.ednet.ns.ca/waymac/Sociology/A%20Term%202/Political%

20Spectrum/Communist_Manifesto_10_points.htm

Answer 8

Corporate greed, the big guys sit on their a s s doing nothing and sucking all the money out of the company while we work our nutz off for nothing.....

Answer 9

i tought it was a 44 hour week not 40 hour or maybe 44 hour include saturday well i guess you guys are working over time but your boss dont pay you 4 overtime

Answer 10

the 40 hour work week died and 60 took over