Progressive congressional staffers roasted over tone deaf demand for 32-hour work week

No wonder Congress is known for its productivity.Liberal staffers are demanding Congress establish a rotating 32-hour workweek that goes into effect when lawmakers work from their districts, drawing widespread mockery from critics.

The Congressional Progressive Staff Association contended that staffers are forced to “work long hours at a level of rigor that regularly leads to burnout” when Congress is in session and suggested that a rotating system could ease that burden.“Given the cyclical nature of the schedule, we propose implementing a 32-hour workweek for DC-based staff during district work periods and a 32-hour workweek for district-based staff while in-session,” the association, which has some 1,500 members, wrote in a letter to all members of the 119th Congress.“If implemented, offices are not likely to see a drop in overall productivity,” they added.

“If members wish to keep their offices open five days per week, they can stagger which days employees have off so that staff are available every day.”Lawmakers in Congress are typically the ones who set their own policies for staff.“The intensive nature of these roles often causes staffers to seek new positions earlier than they would in a more predictable and sustainable work environment.

This is a poor outcome for both the office and the staffer,” the group added.The letter was also directed specifically at Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY).The association had been formed in 2021 and previously pushed for a $45,000 base salary for staffers and the right to unionize.

But the missive for a 32-hour workweek, which was approved by the association’s membership, It also went too far for Sen.Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) who called it a “terrible idea.”“But do understand most of my staff hasn’t seen a 32-hour work week in months and months and months, b...