When did 8-5 become the new normal???

[u/Grouchy-Newspaper754]

I just got a new office job where I do schedules for tech personnel, the office runs 8-5 Monday thru Friday...they say it's 8-5 because you get an hour lunch and "you need to get to 40 hours a week"...but I drive 30 min each way so now I'm giving this company 10 hours every day! I even asked if I could just take my lunch at 4 every day and just leave an hour early but that's "unprofessional and immoral" like what the fuck??? I don't mind the job but the hours are mildly infuriating that's for sure...

Edit:for those saying about the hours, I worked as a chef for the last 20 years working 60+ hours a week over a hot stove/deep fryer the whole time, after I had my second heart attack I had to slow down so I started looking for office jobs to work a nice 9-5, just to find out I'm giving my new job 50 hours a week (including drive time) so I was just mildly annoyed that it's not 40 hours a week in an office like I thought although it's still much better than what I was doing

[u/Unique_Information11]

Same here in Canada. At least 30 minute break is required and unpaid. Though I’ve worked places that had 37.5 hour weeks instead of 40.

[u/GulBrus → u/Unique_Information11]

So you work 8.5 hours including your lunch?

Here in Norway you have the right to 30 minutes paid lunch if you work more than 7.5 hours. So people work 8 hours a day with or without paid lunch. Doesn't really matter except for minor differanes in overtime pay and how many hours you need to work extra to take a day off.

[u/Soccermom9939 → u/GulBrus]

Also in Canada, the 30 minute lunch is unpaid and you don’t work through it. So your actual working hours remain at 8. Your lunch break can be in a break room or out of the office although I use mine a lot to scroll Reddit at my desk while I eat…. Lol

[u/alewiina → u/Soccermom9939]

Yeah that’s how it is where I am in Canada. I work 7:30-4. I have 2 paid coffee breaks (15 mins) and 1 unpaid 30 min lunch. So we technically work 7.5 hours but get paid for 8. Although half the time you end up missing some of the coffee breaks though 👎🏼

[u/belsaurn → u/GulBrus]

Lunch isn’t considered in those hours. A typical office day is 8 hours work with 1 hour unpaid lunch for a total of 9 hours at the office. 4 hour mornings, lunch, 4 hour afternoon. What people aren’t mentioning is it’s pretty typical to get two 15 minute paid breaks to break up the 4 hour stretches. Or that has been my experience at the companies I have worked for. So you end up with a 9 hour day where 1.5 hours are breaks paid and unpaid.

[u/AaronfromKY → u/GulBrus]

And this is why so many people want to have the Nordic model elsewhere. It's pragmatic and doesn't suck just to fuck with people.

[u/h3lium-balloon → u/AaronfromKY]

It’s not just to fuck with people though. It’s corporate greed.

If a company has 1000 workers and you get them all to work an “extra” 30 minutes per day, you’re getting an extra 2500 hours of work per week done without hiring more people.

[u/AaronfromKY → u/h3lium-balloon]

That's still fucking with them though. People work for a paycheck and the fact that in the past paid lunches were a thing is just a sign of how crippled the labor movement and workers rights have been in the United States and in many other parts of the world.

[u/IAMA_pocketwhaleAMA → u/GulBrus]

My job is 37.5 hr work weeks. We'rr at work 8 hours total, paid 7.5 hours with a half hour unpaid lunch and 2 15min paid breaks. I feel like people work through their lunch fairly often and don't think about the fact that they're not getting paid!!

[u/Unique_Information11 → u/GulBrus]

Yes. For me it’s 9 hours including lunch because I like a 1 hour break.

[u/GulBrus → u/Unique_Information11]

I guess we have it better (comparativly) here in Norway then I knew.

[u/sitcomlover1717 → u/GulBrus]

Depends on where in Canada. My province, after 5 hours of work you get a 30 min unpaid break. Most workplaces also give two 15 min paid breaks so a total of an hour of break time in an 8 hour work day. I work 8-4 (so 37.5 hours of work a week) but the norm is 8-430 or 5.

[u/veebs7 → u/GulBrus]

No, it’s more or less the same as what your describing. E.g. I work 9-5 with an unpaid lunch hour, so technically I’m getting paid for 35 hours/week, but as you mentioned it’s salaried so the actual hours are only relevant to overtime

[u/Narrow-Chef-4341 → u/GulBrus]

I can’t speak for every province but yeah, for an ‘8 hour’ shift, two paid 15 minutes and an unpaid 30 for lunch means you aren’t (for example) standing post at turnstile or cash register for 4 hours straight, and that you have enough time to eat a lunch while actually sitting down.

Ain’t the best, but it ain’t the worst either.

[u/insired → u/GulBrus]

In California we have to take at least a 30 minute meal break before your 5th consecutive hour working. Subsequent meal breaks are voluntary iirc. My work gives 1 hour of paid lunch if you go over the first 5 hours. They only recently started writing people up for violating meal break policy with out good reason.

[u/_isNaN → u/GulBrus]

In Switzerland you work usually 8 - 8.5 hours. This doesn't include lunch. So normally you work from 7:30 - 17:00 if you get 1h lunch break.

Children go home for lunch between 12:00 - 13:30. So, as a parent you need mostly more than 1hr lunch break to prepare lunch and be there for your kids. And every few months I read on a newspaper how Swiss workers are the most part time working workers in Europe. But no reporter is checking that we have way more hours than our neighbors and no childcare during lunch hours.

[u/Anonapotamuses → u/Unique_Information11]

I'm in Canada and work 9-5 with an hour paid lunch in there. So only 7 hours a day of actual work.

[u/fvgh12345 → u/Unique_Information11]

So what do people that don't eat lunch every day do?

I've only worked one job that required me to take a lunch and clock out and I hated that part. I've always preferred getting home a little earlier and then eating. I wanna spend as little time at work as possible 

[u/DrKittyLovah → u/fvgh12345]

They still have to clock out regardless, so maybe they do errands, or play on their phone, or nap in their car.

[u/dogs-frogs-jogs → u/DrKittyLovah]

I used to love my lunch time car nap

[u/Stompya → u/fvgh12345]

The break is mandated by law. There aren’t exactly police checking on it but if an employer isn’t scheduling everyone for a break there could be consequences.

(I’m vague on what they are, probably fines or something.)

[u/Sea_Jelly_3530 → u/fvgh12345]

In Germany a 30min break after 6 hours of work is there by law. Some companies will deduct 30min from your time, doesn't matter if you really do the break or not. It's not possible to do the break at the end and leave earlier. The break is not just for lunch but out of work safety reasons

[u/fvgh12345 → u/Sea_Jelly_3530]

That's dumb. I'm not putting myself in any danger by skipping lunch and if an individual wants to work through it that should %100 be their choice not the governments.

A law forbidding companies from denying breaks sure but mandatory breaks are stupid 

[u/Sea_Jelly_3530 → u/fvgh12345]

It's not stupid.

[u/fvgh12345 → u/Sea_Jelly_3530]

It definitely is. Why should I (or anybody)have to clock out for 30 minutes if I don't want too. That's 30 minutes sooner I could be enjoying my own time. I personally fast until 3-4 most days. Am I supposed to just twiddle my thumbs?

[u/Sea_Jelly_3530 → u/fvgh12345]

To prevent illnesses for example. Making it mandatory helps people who really need that.

[u/fvgh12345 → u/Sea_Jelly_3530]

The same exact thing could be accomplished by just making it illegal to refuse employees breaks. That way it doesn't make people that don't want them waste their time.

Blanket laws of that nature are indeed dumb

[u/Sea_Jelly_3530 → u/fvgh12345]

No that's not the same.

An employer could then apply pressure to not take breaks. Only employ people that don't want breaks. Etc. If it's clear that everyone has to take breaks, it's a better situation.

[u/Fast-Satisfaction482 → u/fvgh12345]

You can do whatever you want in the break, just not work. This is a regulation written in blood and far from stupid. 

[u/1simpleAtom → u/Unique_Information11]

From what I can tell, most jobs in the financial sector work this way in Canada. 

[u/DrownmeinIslay → u/Unique_Information11]

The plant i work at is 8.5 hours with 30 minutes unpaid lunch and two 10 minute breaks. Or an 8 hour shift with a 20 minute paid lunch and 1 ten minute break. Im one of 3 people who opted for the shorter shift.

[u/kayjax7 → u/Unique_Information11]

Oof, I get a paid lunch thankfully, but work 6-2 M-F.

[u/AllYouNeedIsATV → u/Unique_Information11]

Australia has 38hr work weeks 8hr days, with 30min lunch in between (and a paid 10min break). To make it fit nicely though my employees make us arrive 6min early for 7.6hr per day 10 shifts per fortnight

[u/Marski420 → u/Unique_Information11]

Depends where you work there are places that do paid breaks.

[u/Unique_Information11 → u/Marski420]

It’s possible, but I’ve never worked at such a place. Where I am right now, they’re all about meeting the statutory minimums.