There are negative reactions from many quarters to PS chairman Paul Magnette’s proposal to introduce a 32-hour working week without losing wages. Not feasible, say employers, among others. But PS finds an ally in the socialist union ABVV. “This is what people want. We need politicians who dare.”
The plan that PS proposed last weekend: a shorter working week of 32 hours with full pay. Working one day less for the same pay, something that immediately received many reactions.
Magnette herself already indicated that it would not be immediate and the proposal was shot down from all possible angles, and yet Miranda Buelens supports it. The general secretary of the socialist trade union ABVV is also in favor of the idea, as it turned out earlier. She is therefore happy that it is being discussed again.
“The employer also benefits,” she said on Radio 1. “Because you have more happy employees, you put less pressure on them and you will have fewer people who will burn out. In addition, you can better absorb the arrival of new technologies, such as artificial intelligence (AI), so that people are less likely to be out of work.” The fact that employers call it unrealistic is dismissed as nonsense. “Employers have been saying for a hundred years that it is not feasible. That’s what they said when we moved to the 40-hour week.”
Because, Buelens said, it is not sustainable for employees at the moment. “We see that many people are sick and that many young and elderly people long for a better quality of life and do not just want to work. Everyone is asking for this. We notice this from the many reactions from our supporters.” How can it be financially feasible? “More than 1 billion per day is currently flowing from our country to tax havens,” says Buelens. “That money could be used to implement positive policies and improve wages. I think people are really ready for it. We need politicians who dare to do that.”
