A young woman explains on YouTube why she considers the 40-hour workweek outdated and does not want to work that way. Many resonate with her words, while others respond with angry comments.
What kind of statement is that? 26-year-old Anna, who is active on YouTube under the name anna anderswo, published a video on February 6, 2025, titled ‘I do not want to work.’ In it, she explains that she finds the classical model of a 40-hour workweek no longer contemporary.
In some industries, AI is already being relied upon, as it works continuously without complaining.
26-Year-Old Finds the 40-Hour Workweek Outdated
What exactly does she say? Anna, who works as an educational professional in a children’s housing group, states she never wants to work 40 hours a week again and criticizes a system that prioritizes productivity above all.
- The 40-hour workweek was a significant advancement compared to the terrible working conditions of the Industrial Revolution. However, the working world has changed – while physical strain was the main issue back then, mental strain is now a problem, too.
- Many people can only work productively for 3 to 5 hours a day anyway.
- Particularly, work in the social sector is so exhausting that many people cannot sustain it until retirement age.
- According to Anna, many people’s free time goes towards recovering from work. There is often little time or energy left for hobbies.
As a consequence, the 26-year-old has already reduced her working hours in her job. However, such a solution is not feasible for everyone. A societal rethink is necessary here.
You can watch the entire video here:
‘I Lived for Two Years Only for My Work. And I Did Not Become Rich’
How are the reactions? Anna’s video received 95,000 views in just over a week, quite a lot for a channel with only 4,500 subscribers. Many people see themselves in her statements. For example, in the comments, it says:
- “You speak to my soul… I am falling apart because of this kind of life. […]”
- “Thank you for these true words! I am 48 years old and will never work full-time again. After burnouts and illnesses, I want to fill my life with more beautiful things.[…]”
- “I feel what you are saying… I was a truck driver for two years. […] I have been on sick leave for 8 months. I can’t do anything anymore, not even vacuum. I lived only for my work for two years. No friends, no vacation, nothing… And I did not really become rich from it… Sick world.”
However, others seem to feel personally attacked by the video. In another video on YouTube, Anna shows some of the comments and addresses the criticism. Some people find the 26-year-old’s ideas “utopian.”
40 hours a week are manageable – at least that way, one has accomplished something productive at the end of the day and is “not just stuck in their own ego trip,” writes a user. Another one states: “I also think this woman is talking complete nonsense.” Such people should just “come back to reality.”
Some also argue that those who think this way are “absolutely not resilient” or are choosing “completely wrong jobs.”
And what does she say to the criticism? Anna briefly addresses the most common points of criticism, clarifies some of her statements from the first video, and explains how, in her opinion, our society should function.
However, the 26-year-old also admits that she is not an economic expert and does not have a “perfect solution”. For her, it is a fact that something must change for society to become a bit happier – even if it is just something like the four-day workweek. That is to be introduced permanently in one country in Europe.
In Anna’s comments, the prejudice that young people simply do not want to work properly is also repeatedly evident. Yet many feel that work is simply worth much less than before. One user writes: “[…] In the past, you could afford a house with a job that paid fairly poorly and thus work towards something.”
Nowadays, such a desire is unrealistic. One wonders what it is all for. Many other younger people feel the same: Generation Z is fed up with being called lazy workers and is convinced: Boomers had it easier
