I’ve always supported causes directed at more time off, such as Take Back Your Time and efforts to increase and strengthen family leave because of their health benefits.  A new effort is underway to encourage the world to move toward a 21-hour work week.  This effort makes the most sense.  I’ll read the paper by The New Economics Foundation (NEF) tonight and comment more later, but until then, check out this idea:

A ‘normal’ working week of 21 hours could help to address a range of urgent, interlinked problems: overwork, unemployment, over-consumption, high carbon emissions, low well-being, entrenched inequalities, and the lack of time to live sustainably, to care for each other, and simply to enjoy life.

Is there anything more faithful than working less, consuming less, engaging more, and respecting resources?

The One Criticism

One of the issues people have with making significant changes in any industry is the singular reverence for the immediate trade-off.  When discussing the difference between a hybrid and combustion engine vehicle, we look at the fuel savings put against the increased cost at a 1-to-1 ratio, rather than factoring in other savings, such as reduced total fuel use and carbon emissions.  Another is the cost of changing a company’s infrastructure, such as pollution systems to decrease emissions  as if the most important issue is the one-time cost against this year’s bottom line.

Of course the switch to a 21-hour work week would have costs and challenges attached, but the long-term investment would be so very worth it.  Imagine: more time for GOD, family, friends!  More time to engage your passions!  More time to figure life out!  How can we not give it a shot?

Related articles

• The 21-Hour Work Week? (guylibrarian.com)
• Cut the working week to 20 hours… and it will BOOST growth say economists (dailymail.co.uk)