Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) argued for legislation he introduced Wednesday that would establish a 32-hour workweek in the United States in a Senate HELP subcommittee hearing on the topic Thursday, citing that Americans now work more hours than “any other wealthy nation.”
“I hope people hear this, because it’s not an issue we talk about enough. Today in America, 28.5 million Americans — 18% of our workforce — now work over 60 hours a week, and 40% of employees in America now work at least 50 hours a week. We were talking about a 40-hour work week 80 years ago, and that’s what people today, despite the explosion of technology, are working,” Sanders said in opening remarks.
“The sad reality is, Americans now work more hours than the people of any other wealthy nation,” the independent from Vermont continued. “In 2022, employees in the United States ... logged 204 more hours a year than employees in Japan — and they’re hard-working people in Japan — 279 more hours than people and workers in the United Kingdom, and 470 more hours than workers in Germany.
“Despite these long hours, the average worker in America makes almost $50 a week less than he or she did 50 years ago, after adjusting for inflation. Now let that sink in for a moment,” the senator added. “Think about all of the extraordinary changes in technology that we have seen over the last 50 years.”
