WASHINGTON — Could a 40-hour workweek become a thing of the past?
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Rep. Mark Takano (CA-39) have reintroduced a bill that could cut about eight hours off full-time employees’ regular pay, requiring overtime after some employees hit 32 hours.
Takano, in a news release, said he first introduced the bill in 2021 to amend the Fair Labor Standards Act to cut the standard workweek from 40 hours to 32 hours for nonexempt employees, allowing those who can earn overtime to do so after working only 32 hours a week.
Takano reintroduced the bill in 2023 in the House, while Sanders introduced the measure in 2024 in the Senate, USA Today reported.
Fox Business said the Sanders-backed plan would cut the workweek over four years without reducing pay or benefits, adding that advances in artificial intelligence could make it possible.
“At a time when artificial intelligence and robotics will radically transform our economy, it is imperative that the financial gains from this new technology benefit working families, not just a handful of billionaires and corporate CEOs. One important way to do that is through a 32-hour workweek with no loss in pay or benefits,” Sanders said in a news release.
The first tier would take the workweek from 40 hours to 38 hours, then 36 hours before lowering it to 34 and eventually 32 hours.
Several unions have backed the bill, according to Takano’s office.
But not everyone thinks it will work.
Club for Growth President David McIntosh believes the measure would cost jobs and benefits while making living “more unaffordable for Americans,” Fox Business reported.
The Club for Growth dubs itself an “economic conservative organization” with two political action committees, according to Ballotpedia.
USA Today said the chance of the bill passing and becoming law is slim because the Democratic-backed bill must pass the House and Senate, both controlled by Republicans.
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