Working hours and time off

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• Why an Eight-Hour Workday? Its History and the Question of Leaving EarlyImagine an office where the agreed working day runs from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., with a genuine one-hour break.
• Use Japan's Stability, but Skip the "Grin and Bear It" Default PathJapan is remarkably stable.
• Why Doesn't Work Shrink When We Get More Efficient?Why do working hours stay the same even after we become more efficient?

This week’s archive picks

Each week we rotate in a few older articles from this theme, taking turns through all of them.

• AI cut the job by 40%, so why do we add 67% more work?A sensible way to judge an AI subscription is to ask how many hours it gives back.
• Leaving the Game Where Someone Had to Say “I’m the Manager!” — Overtime, Pay Tables, Status Flexing, and Changing Jobs“What would happen to my annual income if I worked overtime until morning?”
• Overtime Is an Expensive Way to Run Sports OperationsA familiar operational failure looks like this: a temporary team is assembled, completed work comes back for revision, people are pulled back into tasks they…

All “Working hours and time off” articles, newest first

Newest first

• 参考情報メモIn some workplaces, you still hear phrases like these:
• Survived All-Nighters in the Lab? That Doesn't Make 7 p.m. Easy for EveryoneImagine surviving a university lab where late nights, missed weekends and experiments that refuse to end are practically routine.
• Is Delegating to People Harder Than Using AI? The “I'll Do It Myself” Overtime TrapPeople say telling AI what to do is difficult. But asking another person involves explaining, schedules, emotions, trust, and responsibility.
• Why Does Paid Leave in Japan Expire After 2 Years?On paper, paid leave is a worker's right under Japanese law.
• Why an Eight-Hour Workday? Its History and the Question of Leaving EarlyImagine an office where the agreed working day runs from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., with a genuine one-hour break.
• Why Doesn't Work Shrink When We Get More Efficient?Why do working hours stay the same even after we become more efficient?
• Use Japan's Stability, but Skip the "Grin and Bear It" Default PathJapan is remarkably stable.
• Can You Commit to a Saturday One Month From Now?“How much overtime do you do?”
• Overtime Is an Expensive Way to Run Sports OperationsA familiar operational failure looks like this: a temporary team is assembled, completed work comes back for revision, people are pulled back into tasks they…
• Why can people at large companies seem to marry earlier? Connecting salary, overtime, company prestige, and workplace “baby waves”At a wedding, someone looked at the camera being used by the photographers and casually said:
• Leaving the Game Where Someone Had to Say “I’m the Manager!” — Overtime, Pay Tables, Status Flexing, and Changing Jobs“What would happen to my annual income if I worked overtime until morning?”
• AI cut the job by 40%, so why do we add 67% more work?A sensible way to judge an AI subscription is to ask how many hours it gives back.
• We couldn't book the day out, so I said "take PTO": and they didWe were trying to plan a day out.
• Less Overtime, Same Work? That’s a Management ProblemReducing overtime is desirable.
• Busy but Not RichSome people at work always look busy.
• How to use a weekday paid day off: hotel lunch and hot springsWhen work drains you, taking paid leave does not always mean planning a big trip.
• “Just Change Jobs” Can Be Dangerous Too: How to Work Without Being Swept Along by Companies or Career Services“Devote yourself to the company” alone is dangerous.
• “Temp Work Is Easier” May Be an Illusion: Choose Work by Stress Type, Fit, and Future RiskFull-time employment can be exhausting.