Should there be a legally mandated ceiling on the number of hours worked per week?
There should be a limit on the number of hours worked in order to aid society as a whole.
There should be a legally mandated ceiling on the number of hours worked per week in order to aid society as a whole and to prevent the creation of a slave class. Individuals that work too many hours have poorly managed personal lives, declining overall health and are much more prone to accidents in the workplace as productivity slides due to exhaustion.
Posted by: ThegaXenThere should be a legally mandated ceiling on the number of hours a person can work per week because of the shortage of jobs today.
Allowing someone to work an excessive amount of hours in a week, such as 80 hours per week means that another person may be able to be employed as well, helping to stabilize our currently struggling economy. Some overtime should be allowed because people have to support themselves and their families, of course, but others who are jobless should be given this opportunity as well.
Posted by: jaamatathere should be a ceiling
Employees where i work don't get to choise how late they work. They are forced to. Nobody will work there for more than a year. It's not fair to work so long without benefits or overtime pay. It is commission based and it's a service company. They do not understand what a 8-10 hour day is. They want your time 12-14 hours a day six days a week. There needs to be a law against this.
Posted by: AnonymousI agree there should be a legally mandated ceiling on the number of hours worked per week because greedy companies take advantage of employees who need money.
A corporation will run an employee into the ground and into an early grave if it serves the best interest of the company. Most huge corporations take out "dead peasant" life insurance policies on their employees as well so it is to their advantage to work people literally to death. Someone has to step in to protect workers from corporations and themselves. We have laws mandating seat belt use, drinking limitations and other common sense issues so it's not unrealistic for the government to step in and protect us from working until we drop.
Posted by: N3vinFacePeople shouldn't be treated like machines.
There should be a cap on hours especially if you must work for someone else. People aren't machines and shouldn't be treated as such. I have worked 80 hours a week and been miserable as hell for it. I value having free time just as much or even more than just having a fat bank account.
Posted by: AnonymousProductivity Will Decrease
If people are working too many hours a week they become tired and exhausted which leads to a decrease in productivity. It's better to just work a lower number of hours a week because it guarantees an increase in productivity and insures that the employees are doing their work to the best of their abilities.
Posted by: AnonymousThere should be a legally mandated ceiling on the number of hours worked per week but it should be considerably higher than the 40 hour per week standard.
There should be a legally mandated ceiling on the number of hours worked per week but it should be considerably higher than the 40 hour per week standard. There are limits for many jobs that are safety related, like airline pilots, but I do not think it would hurt to put a ceiling on other jobs. Putting a ceiling on all jobs would insure safety, potentially reduce stress, and potentially eliminate a few abusive cases. I do not think that the government should make this ceiling restrictive though but just at a safe limit, which should be significantly higher than 40 hours per week.
Posted by: SilverMathiNo, because it is not the governments place to say how much an individual can work per week.
Companies are all unique. They require different actions to function, and have different resources. It is up to the company to determine what they need to function, as well as how they choose to treat their employees. It is also an individual right to choose how much they wish to work in a week, based on their own individual and family needs.
Posted by: danielleduceI agree that there should be a legally mandated ceiling on the number of hours worked per week, especially for jobs where public safety is involved.
There should be a legally mandated ceiling on the number of hours worked per week. It has been shown in many scientific studies that lack of sleep leads to forgetfulness and accidents. The more hours people work per week results in less hours of sleep and therefore it becomes more likely that they will be error prone. The legal mandate should certainly pertain to occupations where public safety can be directly affected, such as truck driver, doctor, etc. Therefore there should be a legal mandate on the number of hours worked per week.
Posted by: VampMarceI agree that there should be a legally mandated ceiling on the number of hours worked per week to preserve American family life.
Americans already work more than people in most other countries. While I certainly agree that capitalism is an ideal economic system, it takes a large toll on American culture when Americans are forced to work more and more hours to compete for business. We live in a society based on family values, and working excessively takes away from these traditions.
Posted by: SilverDanoHEALTH
Your company should not be allowed to make you work more than 2 hours overtime a day for deadlines. Hire part time workers. These poor people cannot possibly do a good job working from 9am to 4am then up again to work Mon - Sun. It is not a life! Not fair and not healthy! Corporations use people and they are not intelligent enough to know that people get tired and need rest, it's not all about their deadline! Hire part time workers! This is no life to live, it's not a life, it's a little money to pay the bills.
Posted by: AnonymousI think we would have a happier and healthier society if we worked a little less.
As of right now, some jobs require a lot of time and energy. I think that legally mandating the number of hours worked is an interesting idea. I think that we would see a drop in stress levels, more family time and participation and healthier workers. This probably wouldn't make too many people happy at first, though, and it would take some getting used to. I just see it as a way to raise healthier families and having less levels of stress that are exhibited in really tough jobs, like ER doctors and nurses, and other highly stressful occupations.
Posted by: PointlessElbert47Think about the whole Economy
Think about the whole Economy, the low quality products people would proucde while working too many hours would hurt them overall, so it would be illogical to let them hurt themsleves. Easy as that. No more problems. Also since when people knew whats good for them? Since NEVER. People need to be regulated.
Posted by: Anonymous
There should not be a ceiling on the number of hours worked per week because that is a person's choice.
There should not be a ceiling on number of hours worked because some careers or jobs require more hours than others. As well, people can choose the number of hours they work either by telling their employer or quitting if the number of hours is too much. Some people or employers would also try to work around this rule by making one job into two so the number of hours could be altered, so the effectiveness of a mandate like this could be easily undermined.
Posted by: Sk8rChriNo, people ought to be able to work all they want.
Workers should be able to put in as many hours as they want to; however, there should be a limit on the number of hours an employer can require a person to work. If people can handle putting in long hours to achieve their goals, I don't see why they shouldn't be allowed to do so. They just shouldn't be forced to do so.
Posted by: PinkMychShould the government tell us how many hours we have to play each week as well?
It is not a question of health or social necessity, the government has no right to tell anyone they can't work, there are FAA and OSHA restrictions on safety jobs and jobs such as piloting. Otherwise you need to unionize. Asking people, willing to work, to stop so that others have the opportunity is ridiculous and not how our economy works. Besides there are state and federally mandated hours of operation, with the exception of commission or tip jobs a company can not work you more than 40 hours a week without overtime. But different states will argue if that applies after an 8 hour day or after the completion of the initial 40 hours.
Posted by: AnonymousEmployees should be allowed to work as much as they want.
Each family has different needs. This includes working as much as needed to provide for the family or them self. The government has no business telling a person how much they can and can not work because the government can not tell a person how much they can and can not earn. While it may be important to protect your employees, in today's economy, being over employed is an asset to your pocket book.
Posted by: R3ubHockeyI support the right for the worker to work as many hours per week as they would like.
In a free society it should be up to the individual worker on how many hours they work per work. There should be no "ceiling" imposed in a capitalist market. By allowing the worker to set their own hours, you instill a value to work ethics. The only exception to this rule should apply to children which should have a limit imposed.
Posted by: PinkThorWork should not be measured or thought about in hours, we all have the same numbers of hours per week. Laws should not measure whether our time is at work or free time.
Entrepreneurial work is often mixed with being home in the sort of way that is difficult to legislate, my parents owned a home business and in this more ideal state of freedom (at least for us) we knew when we were actually focused on work and when we weren't, but outside people such as governments can't easily make the same distinction. More laws about work stifles self employment and is not worth the benefit.
Posted by: groovyboxCompanies should be able to determine the adequate number of hours per week, because it is their decision, not the government's.
The government should not get involved in mandating a ceiling on the number of hours worked per week. These decisions should be up to the company executives. However, I believe the government can help in protecting the safety of workers by investigating abuses, and taking allegations of high weekly hour abuse by workers seriously.
Posted by: SpikyWesleyThere should not be a legally mandated ceiling on work hours as this should be worked out privately between the employer and employee.
How many hours an employee works should be between the employer and the employee and negotiated upon an employee accepting employment. The government should not interfere as this can create problems for both employers and employees. For example, some businesses may require extra hours during a particularly busy week (e.g. introduction of a new product), but less on a different week. A government mandate would hurt the flexibility of this business which would cause it to be uncompetitive with overseas competition. Furthermore, some employees may choose to work heavy hours as they need extra money for special circumstances. They should have the freedom to do so.
Posted by: EminentBennett93Some people work extra hours because they need the money, and there are also employees, such as doctors, who can't control their hours.
There are many people that work extra hours in order to support their families, pay off debts, or just save money. Capping the hours would hurt everyone. Other professions, such as doctors and police officers, can't always control their hours. You wouldn't want your surgeon leaving in the middle of your bypass.
Posted by: CeIIoBurkePeople have changes in their lives that make it either necessary or advantageous to work more or less than what is considered normal.
People should be able to work as much as they want and can. Right now some people have circumstances that make it necessary to work more hours. Some cannot work as many hours as others, due to health or ability, and the hours they work should be a judgment call made by them. However, if we are physically able and want to work more hours to benefit ourselves or our families, than that should be allowed.
Posted by: babydoll93I don't think that mandating a ceiling on work hours should be allow, as it would take away our freedom to choose.
I don't think it's anyone's business except our own, regarding how many hours we want to work. People who prefer to work part-time have plenty of choices now. Those who are workaholics, thrive in positions where there are no time clocks, and aren't happy unless they're working. Those types of positions are plentiful as well. To set a mandated ceiling on work hours is irrational and rather pointless, considering the fact that the length of a person's work day is a personal preference. I also believe that such a mandate would be detrimental to the betterment of ones' life. Lots of us work overtime to that we can bring home a better pay check. Creating a ceiling on hours would totally destroy our sense of ambition. There would be no point in striving for anything better, because there would be no opportunity to do so.
Posted by: KimbeBeatI oppose legally mandating the amount of hours a person can work a week, because it violates a person's rights.
I oppose legally mandating the amount of hours a person can work a week. People should have the right to work as many hours a week as they want too. It seems like a person must work as many jobs as they can to support their family. More and more people don't want to work. They get on welfare and food stamps. Why would we want people to work less?
Posted by: RaouICyberI do not agree with a legally mandated ceiling on the number of hours a person can work, I think a person should be able to work as many hours as they want.
If a person wants to sign up for extra hours of work then they should be able to. it benefits the employee and the employer. The reasons some companies don't offer unlimited overtime is because they cant afford it. If you need or enjoy working then you should get your full share. Companies should have the basic 40 hr work week in place and if there employees feel they can benefit from more then so be it. Only kids under 18 should have a cap since its not right to have a child work hundreds of hours for work.
Posted by: C0ImEIiteThere should be no ceiling on hours worked, but, instead, a ceiling on hours worked without benefits.
People should be allowed to work as much as they need. That being said, I do think it's stunning that people in the United States can work over sixty hours a week, and not see reasonable pay or benefits from it. So, let employees work as much as they need to. But, make sure that the hours worked match the benefits they should be receiving.
Posted by: ExoticCurtNo, I disagree that there should be a limit on how many hours worked per week, because working extra time is beneficial to many people, and taking that away is wrong.
I think it would be wrong to place a ceiling on working hours each week, because a lot of people depend on overtime to make ends meet. If a law was put into place limiting extra work for these people, what would happen to them? I really don't think working too much is a bad thing. A person must want to work extra if they're doing it, so why stop that from happening? Sometimes extra work needs to be done, and preventing it from happening with a limit could prevent delays, backlogs, and other issues as well. Not a good idea.
Posted by: I33IessNo, because people should decide for themselves how many hours they want to work.
There does not need to be government regulation in every single facet of every person's life. Why is it that we would allow the government to decide for us how many hours we can or should work in a week? As a free individual, it is, always will, and should be my right and prerogative to determine how many hours I want to work and am able to work in a week.
Posted by: MariaR