It’s unknown if the “Fox Facts” crawler was deliberately timed to contradict the assault on Bernie Sanders’ 32-hour workweek legislation.
Near the end of yesterday’s Your World, contributor Gary Kaltbaum ripped Sanders’ bill, saying, "These same people are against shrinkflation at the supermarket but not in hours?"
"You're telling those greedy business owners who don't pay enough that you only have 32-hours a week now, but you're going to pay them the same amount? Simple equation: there's going to be less employees, less productivity, less profits," Kaltbaum continued. "What do you tell the employees? Work less - instead of reaching for the sky, reach for the sidewalk instead?”
Kaltbaum continued ranting. “All I can tell you - just nothing good comes of this. You're dealing with one man who basically has never been in the business world, he's been in politics his whole life, trying to mandate what business has to pay and what to do? Just absolutely crazy.”
Asked by host Neil Cavuto how companies would “deal with this,” Kaltbaum replied, "Cost goes up, productivity goes down, and profits go down. It’s the worst of all worlds."
But as Kaltbaum was speaking, “Fox Facts” crawled across the bottom of the screen, saying, "2022: More than 60 British companies tested a four-day workweek-with most firms reporting no loss in productivity.”
We don’t know whether the crawl’s timing was set up by some Fox worker eager to lighten his own load. But we do know that the British study found benefits for workers and employers.
From The New York Times:
In proposing the legislation, Mr. Sanders cited a trial conducted by 61 companies in Britain in 2022, in which most of the companies that went down to a four-day workweek saw that revenues and productivity remained steady, while attrition dropped significantly. The study was conducted by a nonprofit, 4 Day Week Global, with researchers at Cambridge University, Boston College and a think tank, Autonomy.
Juliet Schor, an economist at Boston College who was the lead researcher on the study, testified at Thursday’s hearing that 91 percent of the companies that switched to a four-day workweek had stuck with the new arrangement a year later.
“Participants tell us the new schedule is life-changing,” Ms. Schor told senators.
The Times also noted the naysayers:
Critics, including some who testified at this week’s hearing, say many of the pilot programs narrowly focus on the types of companies that can afford the flexibility in work schedules, and disregard many companies with employees doing on hands-on work.
You can watch Fox attack Sanders’ proposal below, from the March 14, 2024 Your World.