Ah, the good ole’ nine-to-five, when you tumble out of bed and stumble into the kitchen while yawning and stretching to come to life as you prepare to take on the day. The iconic Dolly Parton sings these lyrics in her song “9 to 5” — “You’re in the same boat with a lot of your friends / Waitin’ for the day your ship’ll come in / And the tide’s gonna turn and it’s all gonna roll your way.” Parton has a point — many people will end up working a nine-to-five due to a strict job market and unpredictable future — it’s sad but true.
In the 1800s, the average person worked over 70 hours a week, while steel industry laborers worked 84 hours a week during World War I. The United States work scene in the 1900s was dominated by low wages for long hours and child labor, prompting President Franklin D. Roosevelt to sign the Fair Labor Standards Act, establishing mandatory overtime pay to employees working more than 40 hours a week, a minimum wage and protections from child labor. FDR’s law wrote the nine-to-five into law, but Henry Ford can be credited with normalizing it, as he was one of the most influential business moguls to implement this work schedule. In the 1920s, workers worked five days a week, eight hours in the Ford factory each to boost productivity.
We must acknowledge the significant progress made from the early 20th century as FDR’s law paved the way for productive work weeks in industrialized settings. However, these binding circumstances are beginning to change and the nine-to-five is on its way to becoming obsolete thanks to technology (hello Zoom) and changing personal values post-COVID-19.
While the COVID-19 pandemic forced remote jobs to take over the job market, people began questioning the traditional office setting as they prioritize flexibility, stability and well-being. This style of work and lenient attitude popularized by the pandemic has persisted with an increasing number of people looking for flexibility when job hunting post-pandemic. Specifically, the pandemic and remote work gave a taste of free time for loved ones and other obligations, creating a healthier work-life balance.
Time is limited and goes by fast — it crushes your soul when you have to rinse and repeat each week and makes your weekends stressful since you don’t want to go to the “cell.” Having a four-day workweek with 10-hour days or flexible scheduling could potentially help employers adjust to the changing work demands to lure in prospective applicants. It’s no wonder people are turning to fields such as retail and real estate, in which a major perk is flexibility in customizing schedules. Retail, for example, has often been regarded as a suitable field for college students or those working multiple part-time jobs because of the ability to build schedules around hobbies or even doctors appointments. Meanwhile, most real estate brokers and sales agents are self-employed, providing further flexibility in scheduling and accommodation to irregular work hours.
Another nail in the nine-to-five coffin is loss of meaning to “financial stability.” Nine-to-fives no longer guarantee good pay and a stable household income as inflation is at a point where Dollar Tree increased prices from $1.00 to $1.25 and gas prices soared 82 cents in 2021, making it harder for families to provide for themselves at reasonable prices. To understand the current American college-educated workforce, picture this — you just got your master’s in finance (or insert anything else) to make yourself stand out from the crowd when applying for your dream gig at Wells Fargo (or any other company). You get hired after several rounds of interviews only to get a minimal raise in salary — it’s a sin for money to be wasted on a program you dedicated a year to just for your paycheck to increase by three percent.
People are also realizing that nine-to-fives aren’t compatible with a healthy lifestyle. Sitting in a chair all day with poor posture deteriorates our muscles and working long hours takes valuable time from exercise. Even when it comes to mental well-being, Gallup’s annual State of the Global Workplace Report found that 41 percent of employees worldwide experienced “a lot of stress the previous day,” while only 34 percent are thriving — a decline since 2022 mostly felt by younger workers under 35. These settings have a social hierarchy that adds stress if this type of environment isn’t your cup of tea. The stress comes as you’re essentially the boss’s lapdog, meaning you need to beg for time off for a doctor’s appointment or a pass for being late due to a traffic jam. The stress doesn’t stop as your supervisors eye you like a prisoner, noting every mistake you make to be used against you when you want out.
This stress and lack of freedom may be a leading reason to American’s turn to freelancing — from 2022 to 2023, four million people joined the 60 million Americans doing freelance work. Freelancing enables one to become their own boss, customize their own hours, manage their project load and rid themselves of the office hierarchy.
Ultimately, the new norm is well-being — flexibility and health, factors the traditional nine-to-five do not guarantee, are being prioritized post-pandemic. An increasing number of people are experiencing a desire to put their personal lives ahead of work projects, and the job market must adapt to changing demands and make progress, like it always has, toward better standards.
Christian Bongiorno is a junior majoring in political science and is an Opinions intern.
Views expressed in the opinions pages represent the opinions of the columnists. The only piece that represents the view of the Pipe Dream Editorial Board is the Staff Editorial.