A proposal by two lawmakers in the state Assembly would reduce California’s standard work week to 32 hours, or four eight-hour days, for companies with more than 500 employees.
According to the bill there would be no cut in pay, and those who work more would be compensated at a rate of no less than 1.5 times the employee’s regular pay.
“It doesn’t make sense that we are still holding onto a work schedule that served the Industrial Revolution,” Democratic Assembly member Cristina Garcia, one of the bill’s sponsors, said in a statement, as reported by CNBC.
According to the Labor Department nearly 48 million Americans walked away from their jobs on 2021, and the trend is still going strong.
The California Chamber of Commerce opposes the bill, calling it a job killer. “Such a large increase in labor costs will reduce businesses’ ability to hire or create new positions and will therefore limit job growth,” wrote Ashley Hoffman in a letter sent to Assembly member Evan Low, another sponsor of the bill.
Earlier this month, 38 companies across the U.S. and Canada began a four-day work week pilot program led by 4 Day Week Global, a platform created in New Zealand for people and organizations interested in supporting the four-day week “as a part of the future of work”.
