America is facing a spiritual crisis. More leisure time is the cure.

[Valin]

MSNBC (Of Course)

To return to a time when work matters less and leisure matters more, we need to build a new economy where a full-time job provides a living wage.

Sen. Chris Murphy and Tim Ryan, founder of We The People

Dec.9 2023

(Snip)

Contrary to Keynes’ predictions, leisure time isn’t expanding; it’s disappearing. Less and less free time leaves Americans feeling more on edge, more anxious, and more alone than ever before. We are disconnected from each other mentally, physically and emotionally, and we witness the ripple effects in the erosion of civility, the growth of fringe politics, and the increase in violence, suicide and overdose rates. The nation’s emotional health is spiraling in part because there is less and less time for leisure and connection.

Research shows that taking time off from work actually improves productivity and reduces the risk of employee burnout; and public health experts have found that engaging in leisure has significant mental and physical health benefits. That’s not a shocking finding to any normal person. Anyone who works a lot and gets time off for a family event or a mini-vacation feels refreshed and in a better mindset when they get back to work.

(Snip)

(* here it comes...The Answer)

To return to a time when work matters less and leisure matters more, we need to build a new economy where a full-time job provides a living wage. One 40-hour-a-week income should be able to support a family of four. This would assure the worker has adequate free time, and allow one parent in two-parent households, should he or she choose, to be out of the workforce and engaged in full-time family work. The easiest way to reach this goal would be to raise the federal minimum wage. If the federal minimum wage had simply kept up with inflation, today it would be $27 an hour, instead of the current $7.25. Perhaps a nearly $20 increase would be unrealistic, but we need an aggressive effort to help workers make up for all this lost ground.

Strong labor unions will play a big role, too. Unions spent nearly a century fighting for “eight hours for work, eight hours for rest, and eight hours for what you will.” Union organizing is responsible for the few protections we have now between business and personal hours, and stronger unions will be better equipped to fight for better hours, higher wages, reliable pensions and paid leave. That’s why roughly 60% of Americans feel that the decline in union membership is bad for working people.

(Snip)

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* Some skinny old wise ass

 

RADICAL CONCEPT ALERT!