Does Working 9-To-5 Cause More Harm Than Good?

In a viral TikTok, Brielle Asero, 21, tearfully reveals why she is “so upset” after getting a taste of the post-graduate, 9-to-5 work grind.

In the video, which has garnered over 23,000 comments and more than 230,000 likes, Asero shares that she feels depleted by the end of the work day, “The 9-to-5 schedule, in general, is crazy.” She explains, “I get off, it’s pitch black. I don’t have energy. How do you have friends? How do you have time for dating? How do you have time for anything? I’m so stressed out.”

At first blush, a viewer may roll their eyes and dismiss her as “dramatic and annoying”—as she self-describes—for calling out a traditional aspect of adulthood that people have just grown to accept. However, Asero brought to the forefront what is wrong with the hustle-porn work culture in America.

She was shocked and dismayed that the long work days and commute leave her exhausted and lacking a quality balance of work and life. The constant hustle can be debilitating and negatively impact one’s mental health.

Why Are We Still Doing This?

In 1926, Ford Motor Company was one of the first companies to implement the standard 9-to-5 work day under the helm of Henry Ford. Fast-forward to 2023, this work model seems antiquated and harmful to workers’ mental health and emotional well-being.

Although the world learned during the pandemic that it’s possible to have other options, such as remote, hybrid, digital nomad or work from anywhere, many companies are still ordering staff to return to the office

With all of the new technological advancements, apps and workflow software, it doesn’t seem necessary or rational to spend eight-plus hours in a cubicle and then commute home in the dark for another hour or so, five days a week.

The Grinding And Expensive Commute

For people to commute from the suburbs into cities, such as Manhattan, it’s a long slog and train or bus tickets amount to thousands of dollars a year. “Commuting costs $2,000 and 39 hours more than it did before the pandemic,” Fortune reported.

Long travel durations and the unpredictability of commuting times can lead to burnout. If you drive into work, there is wear and tear on the automobile and the mental anguish of being stuck in traffic for hours.

Once you arrive home, you’re tired, cranky, irritable and exhausted. There is only enough time to eat dinner before there’s laundry to do, spend time with the kids, send some emails and catch up on projects and assignments you need to finish before work tomorrow. By 10 p.m., you start crashing and then go to sleep. The next day, the hamster wheel begins all over again.

“Long working hours led to 745,000 deaths from stroke and ischemic heart disease in 2016, a 29% increase since 2000,” according to data from the World Health Organization and the International Labour Organization. The substantial number of strokes and heart disease resulted from working “at least 55 hours a week.”

Is The Eight-Hour Day Really Productive?

If you were to look closely and dissect productivity levels throughout the eight-hour workday, you would uncover the corporate facade that workers appear busy, but are not actually doing meaningful work for eight consecutive hours.

In a 2023 Blind poll, nearly 45% of tech workers said they spend four hours or fewer on “focused work”—uninterrupted time spent in a flow state, concentrating on high-priority tasks. Some professionals said mental strain diminishes their output, while others said low-value tasks, like administrative work, meetings and other menial activities, detract from their productivity.

The long days at the office do not promote efficiency and effectiveness. We’ve all been there. You are in the flow and getting things done. Then, you are hit with a barrage of interruptions. It’s hard to get back to where you were. This daily nuisance is a colossal waste of time and energy.

Unnecessary meetings often conflict with actually getting assignments completed. Employees have to prepare for one meeting while being stuck in another without sufficient focus time. This leads to unproductive behaviors, which drag everyone down.

Humans all have their own biorhythms. Instead of arbitrarily working 9-to-5, it would make more sense for companies to tailor employee schedules to meet their individual productivity peaks. Some people like getting up early to “win the day” and immediately start working. Others hit their stride after a few cups of coffee or are night owls, doing their best work when it’s peaceful and quiet.