Some Consequences of the Five-Day Week in Social and Daily Life in Large and Small Cities

Abstract

The mass-scale shift to the five-day work week, with two days off, affects not only production and the economy, but the areas of public and everyday life. The change in the pattern of work and rest leads to noticeable changes in the mode of life of the bulk of the urban population. A study of these changes is essential for the rational regulation of the social processes brought about by the introduction of the five-day week and, consequently, for its maximum social effectiveness. Obviously, studies of the consequences of the new work week, socially and in terms of mode of life, must be carried out with account taken of the demographic, cultural, and social differences and variations in the mode of life, because the effects of the five-day week on different strata of the population are by no means identical.