FDR orders minimal 48 hour work week in war industry

The standard length of a workday, on the few occasions it was standardized, was hardly the same everywhere. In ancient Rome, where half the year was spent in holiday (although, granted, a lot of work was done by slaves), it was rather short. In the middle ages, Britain’s Alfred the Great ran his kingdom by the motto “Eight hours work, eight hours sleep, eight hours play, make just and healthy day.” By time of the Industrial Revolution, 14 hour, six-day weeks were not uncommon; but eventually the eight-hour day and forty-hour week became the norm, enshrined in the legislature. with a few notable exceptions.

On this day, February 9, in 1943, President Roosevelt declared the institution of a 48-hour work week. “For the duration of the war,” his order said, “no plant, factory, or other place of employment shall be deemed to be making the most effective utilization of its manpower if the minimum work week therein is less than 48 hours per week.

”Roosevelt also began a “wage stabilization” program, freezing all pay and costs for the duration of the war. But in keeping with established law, he did allow for workers working above the 40-hour week to get overtime for the extra hours.