How hard should people in politics work? Sanae Takaichi, the prime minister of Japan, says she only gets two to four hours of sleep per night. “It’s probably bad for my skin,” she said. Her workaholism made headlines recently when the 64-year-old called a 3 a.m. cabinet meeting.
Compare that to staffers of the Democratic National Committee, who threw a temper tantrum earlier this month when party chair Ken Martin announced on a Zoom call that he wants them to start coming in five days a week — come February. That’s six years after the pandemic started.
“This change feels especially callous considering the current economic conditions created by the Trump administration,” said leaders of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 500, which represents the DNC staff, in a statement to the New York Times. It is a bit odd for the opposition party to cite the president’s actions as a reason to work less.
Surely, there’s a happy medium between the 9-9-6 lifestyle — working 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., six days a week — and the entitlement of DNC staff. Most companies, especially outside D.C., required workers to come back to the office years ago. The Post has required all staff to come in at least three days a week since early 2022 and five days since June.
The Republican National Committee, as a point of comparison, sent staffers home for a few months in 2020, but almost everyone was back by that summer. By February 2021, everyone was expected in the office Monday through Friday.
The SEIU might be one of the only labor unions in the world that helps fund management. After all, its political action committee gives nearly all of its political donations to Democrats and Democratic-aligned groups.
Some Democratic staffers on Capitol Hill asked for a 32-hour work week earlier this year. They quickly withdrew that request after much online mockery. But Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont), who caucuses with Democrats, has introduced legislation for an economy-wide 32-hour workweek. It’s endorsed by, among others, the SEIU.
Not all Democrats are on board with slacking off. Neera Tanden, head of the Center for American Progress and former domestic policy adviser to Joe Biden, posted in response to criticism of the DNC’s plans: “If you think democracy is on the line — working in the office is not a big ask.”
A 3 a.m. cabinet meeting is insane. But whining about the prospect of a 3 p.m. in-person strategy session at party headquarters? Give us a break.
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