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I'm thinking about the culture war around AI, specifically the whole UBI debate. If AI truly does take over a lot of human work, there's a lot of people who are savagely agitating for a UBI on one side, saying we'll be post work. The other side of course says no that's not how it works, besides we aren't even close to being able to afford that. The left (generally) takes the former, while the right generally takes the latter.
What I'm surprised by is why nobody has so far mentioned what, to me, seems the obvious compromise - we just shorten the work week! As our forefathers did forcing a 5 day, 8 hour work week, why don't we continue there? Go down to a 4 day work week, and/or shorten standard working hours to 6 per day?
If AI truly will obviate the need for a lot of work, how is this not the more rational solution than trying to magically create a UBI out of money we don't have? How come this idea has barely even entered the discourse? I have been talking and thinking about AI unemployment for years and never once have heard someone argue for this compromise.
No reason I’m working 45 hour days at a big box retail environment - an honestly great and thriving business. But the inertia for the management team, much less the associates, working 30 hours four days a week is absolute.
Also, the full week has to be covered somehow, so you would have one shift working Mon-Thurs, another shift working Tues-Fri, and another Weds-Sat. It would cost more to have three people working separate four day weeks than one person working the five or six day week (e.g Joe works Mon-Fri, gets paid for 5 days. Sally works Mon-Thurs and Bill works Tues-Fri, that is two people for 8 days). Plus, I don't think that employers would pay 5 days wages for 4 days work; you work 4 days, you get paid for 4 days, and if you need more money then either the government has to top up with some kind of UBI payment or you have to be able to work extra hours/take on a second job, which defeats the entire purpose of "we want to employ the people laid off by AI so the 4 day work week will soak them up".
Yes so you hire more people! This would help a lot with the whole AI taking our jobs thing. Sure people might pay a little less, but if everyone makes the shift at the same time this simply would not work.
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Due to the usual cost disease considerations if the rest of society moved over to 30 hour weeks you'd see big pay bumps for 45 hour days in retail environments compared to the current situation.
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