Cutting Worker Hours Did Not Impact Productivity

[applegrove]

Cutting Worker Hours Did Not Impact Productivity

July 6, 2021 at 6:30 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard 37 Comments

https://politicalwire.com/2021/07/06/cutting-worker-hours-did-not-impact-productivity/

"SNIP......

A new study in Iceland found that cutting worker hours without slashing their pay showed no negative impact on productivity.

.......SNIP"

[Hoyt]

1. NPR reported on that too. Apparently the businesses and government cut

meeting time, workers’ breaks, etc.

And workers reported being happier, kind of what happened with many people working at home here.

[zipplewrath]

2. 6 hours

I've seen alot of studies over the years that suggested that you get 6 hours of work out of an office employee every day. You can keep them there for 12 hours, but they'll just basically stretch out their work to fill the day. People basically get their work done "by the end of the day". There are obvious exceptions, although you have to be careful about increasing injury rates and stuff.

I remember when I was young working on a project that had a mandated 10 hour work day. When money got tight, they cut that back to 8 hours, and I didn't notice any slow down in progress.

[meadowlander]

4. That tracks for me.

I get more done in the first three hours of the day than I would in the next twelve if I tried to work through until midnight. My ability to concentrate and make decisions starts declining after lunch and pretty much is gone by the last hour of the day, so I schedule all my admin and background reading tasks for then. If I worked six hour days, I doubt I would notice it in terms of productivity. I've talked to other people in the same job and they agree that the last hour or two or every day is a serious slog and they just sit around looking busy.

We should have gone to a 30 hour work week with the advent of the internet. People work more intensively and harder during the day but are still expected to show up to the office for the same number as hours as workers in the 60s who got half as much done in the course of their day.

[MichMan]

3. So, I can work 2 hrs a day and get paid for 8? Sounds like a deal!

Why did I retire ?