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Auto workers want a four-day workweek. Should they get it?

Tell us where you stand on the ongoing national labor disputes.

September 25, 2023

1 minute to read

It’s been a big couple of years for labor activism in the United States. From teachers to nurses, retail store employees, writers, actors, and baristas, workers are asking for more protection and better pay.

Now, the United Auto Workers are on strike with a number of demands including, wage increases, an elimination of a tired employment system that has some workers making less for doing the same job, cost of living adjustments, pensions, and other protections.

One of their demands has gotten a lot of attention since the strike began last week: The four-day workweek.

Essentially, workers would work 32-hour weeks and get paid for 40 hours, with anything over those hours counting toward overtime. It’s an idea that’s been floated in other sectors — namely office jobs with the ability to work from anywhere — but the auto workers say they’ve been overworking “60, 70, even 80 hours a week just to make ends meet” and they’re not shying away from pushing for this new standard.

It’s unclear how successful they’ll be in getting this demand met, but it’s a challenge they’ve fought and won before. The 40-hour work week that’s become standard in the U.S. is thanks to striking auto workers in the past.

Public opinion seems to be on the side of workers, too. In the major labor disputes of 2023 (Hollywood and the autoworkers) most said they support the workers. In general, a majority of Americans (67%) are currently in favor of unions — a high that has been more or less sustained for the last five years, according to a Gallup survey.

We want to know: What do you think about the four-day workweek? Is this change something more industries should consider or is 40 hours the right amount?

Share your opinions about recent labor activity nationwide and the call for a four-day workweek by filling out the survey below or e-mailing us at [email protected] and we may feature your response in a future Boston.com article.

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