---
title: "This Bill Would Make the Four-Day Workweek a Federal Law in the US"
description: "California Congressman Mark Takano has reintroduced a bill that would make the four-day (32-hour) workweek a federal mandate in the US."
date: "2023-03-12"
modified: "2023-03-12"
authors:
  - name: "Maggie Harrison Dupré"
    job_title: "Senior Staff Writer"
    link: "https://futurism.com/authors/mharrison"
url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/bill-four-day-workweek-federal-law-us"
categories:
  - "Future Society"
tags:
  - "congress"
  - "four-day"
  - "the digest"
  - "work culture"
---

# This Bill Would Make the Four-Day Workweek a Federal Law in the US

![California Congressman Mark Takano has reintroduced a bill that would make the four-day (32-hour) workweek a federal mandate in the US.](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/bill-four-day-workweek-federal-law-us.jpg>)
*\<em\>Image: Getty Images/Futurism\</em\>*

## 32 Hours

California Congressman Mark Takano has reintroduced a [bill](<https://takano.house.gov/imo/media/doc/thirty-two_hour_workweek_act.pdf>) that would make [four-day workweeks](<https://futurism.com/four-day-work-week-trial-success>) a federal mandate, something that would bring about "a significant change which will increase the happiness of humankind," as Takano [told *CNBC*](<https://www.cnbc.com/2023/03/10/bill-proposed-to-make-32-hour-workweek-us-law-by-rep-mark-takano.html>).

"Workers across the nation are collectively reimagining their relationship to labor — and our laws need to follow suit," Takano said in March 1 [statement](<https://takano.house.gov/newsroom/press-releases/congressman-takano-reintroduces-32-hour-workweek-act>). "We have before us the opportunity to make common sense changes to work standards passed down from a different era."

If the bill were to pass, employers would be required to start paying overtime the second that the hour log hits 33, which would not only ensure that workers are fairly paid for longer hours, but would also incentivize employers to hire more people.

## White Collars Rejoice

The four-day workweek has been a buzzy topic for several years now, with its proponents claiming that shortening weekly work hours promotes focus and productivity while meanwhile helping workers maintain a healthier work-life balance.

And there's proof it does just that. Earlier this year, scientists [concluded the largest four-day workweek trial](<https://futurism.com/four-day-work-week-trial-success>), and found it to be a resounding success.

But one [central criticism](<https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2023/03/four-day-week-workweek-studies-white-collar.html>) of the idea has emerged: that the movement is mostly helpful for salaried white-collar workers, while those who work hourly and blue-collar jobs in industries like service and manufacturing get woefully left behind.

While Takano did [admit to *The Washington Post*](<https://www.washingtonpost.com/us-policy/2023/03/08/four-day-workweek-bill-takano/>) that ensuring equal compensation for fewer hours — especially for hourly laborers — is the 32-hour workweek's biggest hurdle, his bill does include non-exempt workers, and according to the *WaPo* has garnered the support of labor organizations like the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), Service Employees International Union, and the United Food and Commercial Workers Union.

In other words: the bill's provisions aren't 100 percent airtight, but it's a step in the right direction.

"The serious conversations about the reduced workweek are happening for white-collar professions," Takano [told *CNBC's Make it*](<https://www.cnbc.com/2023/03/10/bill-proposed-to-make-32-hour-workweek-us-law-by-rep-mark-takano.html>). "What my bill will do is spur conversation about how we democratize this norm to other sectors of the workforce so everybody benefits."

"That's a very big statement," he added. "But it was a big deal 100 years ago when we gave people the weekend by passing the Fair Labor Standards Act," referring to the law that, among other things, cemented the 40-hour workweek as standard in the US.

"These," Takano continued, "are all part of the social justice discourse."

**READ MORE:** [*This bill could make the four-day workweek a reality*](<https://www.washingtonpost.com/us-policy/2023/03/08/four-day-workweek-bill-takano/>) \[*The Washington Post*\]

**More on the four-day workweek:** [*The World's Largest Four Day Work Week Trial a Huge Success*](<https://futurism.com/four-day-work-week-trial-success>)

## Author
At Futurism, I've reported extensively on the rise of AI as a cultural and business force shaping the media industry, and more broadly how those dynamics are changing how we all consume and share information and relate to one another. I'm also fascinated by public health policy and ethics, the role of emerging tech in politics and governance — and the powerful people and forces at those intersections — climate change, and the environment. My investigation on Sports Illustrated's use of AI-generated authors with fictional biographies won a 2024 Mirror Award for "Best Story on Media Coverage of Artificial Intelligence in Journalism and the Media" from Syracuse University's SI Newhouse School, I contributed to Niemen Lab's 2025 Predictions for Journalism series, and I've discussed my work for Futurism during appearances on NPR, CNN, the BBC, the CBC, and more. I grew up in rural Pennsylvania and attended the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where I played Division I field hockey for the Minutewomen as a midfielder. Since then, I've lived in New Orleans, Louisiana and Manhattan, New York. I spend my free time running, reading, perusing archival fashion, and searching for the world’s best negroni. I also have a debonair tuxedo cat, Westley, who's named after "The Princess Bride."

### Author social links  
[Bluesky](<https://bsky.app/profile/mharrisondupre.bsky.social>)