The working day should be 9-3, standard.

[Indecisivelurcher]

The working day should be 9-3. No need for wraparound childcare, which costs £'s and tires children out. More mothers can work. We will have time to look after our elderly, which is so important with aging global populations. With a shorter working day, we have time to pursue our own interests, hobbies and clubs. Time to exercise. Time to cook from scratch. We can keep fit and look after our wellbeing, reducing costs on the NHS. To get a good uptake, clubs should be heavily subsidised, but people will have time to volunteer too, to run the local clubs, to look after green spaces. Because we'll be spending more time outdoors, we'll value our green spaces more and want to look after them. We'll spend time in town centres and hang out in cafe's, instead of just grabbing a takeaway coffee. We will spend our money on local shops instead of online. We will be a community. Time is the key, not money.

Who's going to staff all the cafes, shops, gyms and clubs in your thriving town centre if the working day is 9-3?

Also I couldn't possibly do drop off and pick up and commute to work to be there 9-3.

I love these threads from standard office workers suggesting the world revolves around their desires

More time to spend money... But not as much money.
Dh works 9-5. The timing you suggest would mean cutting 10 hours a week off, so reducing his salary by 25% so we'd have far less money to spend.

I can dream. Life just got a little easier in my head.

There's been a run of these threads, often focused around schoolchildren, with implausible scenarios attached

Do the teachers finish at 3.00pm as well? What happens to the children if everyone finishes at the same time?

I don’t disagree with the general thought, but rather I think flexible working should be the standard (and not a hard fought exception). More people should be able to tailor their hours. As a culture we are obsessed with presenteeism not productivity. Lots of evidence online that fewer hours can increase productivity.

If the working day was 9-3 I would still need wraparound care. Drop off is 8.50, pick up is 3.20 and I work about 45 mins away. Also, how would I be going to the local cafes and shops after work/school if they were only open 9-3?

Way to burst my bubble guys 😂😂😂 Ok my manifesto needs work... Maybe we need staggered shifts 6hrs? If everyone was paid less would the economy adapt?

So all the shops open 9-3? Hospitals, GP surgeries, dentists 9-3? Emergency services 9-3? Public transport 9-3?

There's got to be a better way than the same old rat race!!!

So after 3 o'clock no medical treatment, no social care, no emergency gas or plumbing, no one keeping an eye on the nuclear power station, no one baking bread for tomorrows supermarket shelves, no tv broadcasts, no public transport to get home from finishing at 3.....shall I even bother to go on?

I would quite like a pet unicorn.

I’m assuming in this scenario that everyone is also uber motivated to learn various musical numbers so they can pop out of hedges singing and tap dance down the street at all times. Because that’s about as realistic, workable and desired.

That would equate to a 4 day week. I wouldn't want a 20% pay cut. Plus wraparound care isn't the devil....my some kids absolutely love after-school clubs.

If we want more mother's working ( or to make it easier) then more flexible working is the answer - and more specifically more men working flexibly and taking responsibility for childcare.

I don't think it's necessary for everyone to work 9-3. Pre baby I probably would have appreciated a 10-4 day, post baby I've negotiated longer days but fewer of them.
I think the answer is flexibility, not a rigid set structure, because not everyone is a mum with school age kids and not everyone wants to work school hours.
But if we were all allowed flexibility to complete our work (office based) or work flexible shifts (non office) then I think life would get much easier for many more people.

Alright me and my unicorn will crawl back under that rock utopia...

I generally work 9-3 when my son is at school, I then finish my working day when he is in bed.

So, if we all work 9-3 how do we get a food shop, or pop to clarks for new shoes for our children, go to the cinema etc?

I do agree that the average person in the UK has a poor work life balance, but 9-3 is extreme and not workable.

Something needs to give. People are burnt out whilst others are desperate for a job.
I'd say job sharing is the way to go. You work 9-3, I work 3-9.

Aroundtheworld but you can only ride your unicorn between 9 - 3 because her magical stable workers finish then.

I work in a university, there is no way we could timetable all our classes if they were limited to 9-3. Not enough rooms, not enough staff. The vast majority of my colleagues don’t have children needing wrap around care, why should they work 9-3? Those who do can negotiate flexible working (we’re lucky to have management who are open to that). When you have childcare challenges it’s easy to forget that most people don’t. Nice that people who work in shops or cafes are exempt for the OP’s convenience too. Maybe they’d like to pursue their hobbies and interests rather than serving the new leisure class (who will be shopping and dining on reduced salaries).

Oh go away. The country would grind to a halt. So no drs ,dentists etc to work after 3pm? No shops, when would you food shop? No vets open, no hospitals open, no lorry drivers delivering food etc, no trains running. How can you spend more time in town centres, everywhere will be shut

And then there’s a skills shortage. My company tried to recruit for my role for 18 months before they interviewed me...and that’s not unusual. If I only worked 75% my work simply wouldn’t get done (before I was recruited it was being done by other people in their evenings and we don’t get paid overtime...).

There’s evidence to suggest a shorter week would be more efficient.

Why do we even work 9-5pm as standard? Why don’t people question that model???

So yes we should work differently. Absolutely.

The same old rat race has only got to be the same old rat race because people always want more.
Don’t bother keeping up with the neighbours. Choose a life with one small car, go running rather than gym membership, eat & entertain at home rather than go to restaurants, holiday camping or in a UK B&B, new kitchen once every 30 years rather than every 7, Wilco paint rather than Farrow & Ball, and a fair proportion of the second earners in 2 adult families could already go part time.

But they won’t !

Less hours would bring less pay, therefore less to spend meaning less profits for businesses such as shops/cafes etc. More job losses. Yeah great idea.

Flexible working yes. 9-3 - what if you’re working with people in other countries. West coast US doesn’t ‘wake up’ until 4pm our time.