Saugus residents seem enthusiastic about the idea of a national 32-hour workweek reintroduced by two lawmakers, but expressed concern about how it would be implemented.
Residents interviewed for this story cited more opportunities for income, a better work-life balance, and less stress as reasons for supporting the proposed bill.
“Time is more valuable than money,” said 36-year-old Allen Johnson, who works at Valvoline in Saugus and has two children.
Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, an Independent, and Rep. Mark Takano, a Democrat of California, recently reintroduced the “Thirty Two Hour Workweek Act,” something they had proposed going back as far as 2021. According to their proposal, which suggests gradually changing the typical 40-hour work week to 32 hours over four years, people would work reduced hours while still earning the same pay and benefits of a 40-hour work week. The proposal would also lower when employees could become eligible for overtime pay and double their wages after 12-hour shifts.
Dillon Quinlan Huertas, shopping at the local Trader Joe’s, said he does not regularly work a 40-hour week because his schedule varies. Still, he understands why workers, especially those with families, might prefer a shorter schedule. “It’s quality over quantity at this point,” said Huertas, a 28-year-old cheer coach from Malden.
However, Huertas questioned how the proposal would affect the economy and workplace productivity. He also worried that hourly employees could lose income by working fewer hours, despite a provision in the proposal preventing employers from reducing workers’ overall pay. “If I’m still making $15 an hour, working 32 hours, then I’m just making less money,” Huertas said.
Others expressed similar concerns about pay. Retired Saugus Public Schools teacher Hope Abramson, for instance, worried that employees could lose eight hours of wages, but believed profitable businesses could find a way to make the change fair for workers. “A lot of businesses make a lot of money, and I think the people at the top are making a ton of money,” said Abramson, who lives in Lynn. “I think they can work something out so that it’s fairer for their workers.”
But with a reduced work week, “I would have way more motivation to work overtime,” said Christina Barr, a Saugus postal worker. “It also would be more motivation to get another source of income.”
Johnson said the change would allow workers to pursue a second job or spend more time with their families. “It’ll give mothers and fathers more time to spend with their children,” Johnson said, adding, “Maybe it’ll give me more time to actually go and get a part-time job.”
In introducing their proposal, the two lawmakers cited success stories of a 32-hour work week from elsewhere in the world, including a pilot study conducted in the United Kingdom in 2022 found that over 70 percent of the 3,000 workers included in the study reported being more satisfied with their time and less burnout.
When Sanders last introduced the bill, in 2024, Louisiana Senator Bill Cassidy — who lost his Senate seat in the primary earlier this year — slammed the idea, saying it would “will destroy employers, forcing them to either ship jobs overseas or dramatically increase prices to try and stay afloat.”
The proposal has thus far only been introduced in Congress. No hearings or other actions have been taken up to advance the bill.
Alana Sanchez, a mother on maternity leave, said the proposal’s value comes down to the opportunity for workers to spend more of their lives outside the workplace. “People won’t be burned out by the end of the week, and it just gives you more time,” Sanchez said. “You can’t buy time.”