In the initial October 20th article there was a proposal for the nation's industry to
go to a 40 hour work week. The method of attaining the laws goal of a universal 40 hour
work week was initial to make a proposal to the American Federation of Labor. The
industrial revolution introduced yet new complexities. Sunrise to sunset was too long to
expect people to work indoors at tasks that were now totally disconnected from personal
survival. Factory workers became unhappy and began to push for shorter hours. First they
asked for a limit of 12 hours a day, 6 days a week. During the 1800s, they asked for 10
hours, 6 days a week. Labor Day was introduced in 1882, when most Americans were
still working 60 hours a week and only dreaming of a 48-hour week, which didn't become
the normal until World War I. It wasn't until 1938 that the Fair Labor Standards Act
started the final countdown: 44 hours in 1938, 42 hours in 1939, and 40 hours in 1940. So......
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