News for hackers. Stuff that matters.

A comment on Japan's government plans to encourage 4-day workweek, but experts split. Parent comment

Re:Japan's government plans to encourage 4-day workweek, but... by tjpnz on Monday June 21, 2021 @05:50AM (#27577683)
Does it make sense from an economics standpoint? Perhaps not. But there are benefits to society as a whole. Quite often the people doing those sorts of jobs are getting on in life, if having that job means the person can stay active that could represent a few additional years where they won't be a burden on the health system.
[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Japan's government plans to encourage 4-day workweek, but... by jason0597 on Monday June 21, 2021 @07:58AM (#27578316)
Honestly, giving people these unproductive jobs seems to me like a way of giving out UBI without people even realising it. Because at the end of the day, these jobs are just UBI. They don't add much to the economy.
[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Japan's government plans to encourage 4-day workweek, but... by loonster on Monday June 21, 2021 @10:56AM (#27579775)
It promotes a better culture. I would support this system over USA's welfare.
[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Japan's government plans to encourage 4-day workweek, but... by Matumio on Tuesday June 22, 2021 @07:15AM (#27590234)
You seem to be misunderstanding what UBI is. This sounds more like a job guarantee, which is the opposite of UBI. The main point of UBI is to make sure nobody can ever be pressured into accepting such a job.

Those jobs hardly add any value to society (let alone economy). If you just hand out money instead, some people might find something more useful to do, or at least be better off for themselves. See also David Graeber's essay "On the Phenomenon of Bullshit Jobs".

[ Parent | on HN ]