8 hours labour, 8 hours blog, 8 hours rest

According to Wikipedia, the original slogan “Eight hours labour, eight hours recreation, eight hours rest” was coined by Robert Owen early in the XIX century. The industrial revolution would only provide the appropriate climate for the Eight-hour day movement to become the central demand of the labour movement across the world. Labour Day (as it is celebrated in the U.S. & Canada) is the sad remnant of what was at some point a passionate struggle for what common workers thought were fair labor conditions. It’s commemoration in September is the result of some clever politician trying to diminish the historic impact of Chicago’s Haymarket riots.

But I’m not trying to revive an old working-class vs. Corporations fight. In the spirit of hackers & work culture, I’m more interested in understanding how some of our programmed habits (i.e. culture) are being deeply challenged by the mechanisms of our modern society and its obsession with the net. In the title “8 hours blog”, blogging is a metaphor for all those little things we do seeking to participate in the global village. It is appropriate that it replaces the 8 hours of recreation that our ancestors were asking for, as having a voice on the web certainly provides all the entertainment that our generation can ask for. While a few years ago critics could’ve convinced most that this participation was meaningless, it is now settled that the future of business depends largely on understanding how people create communities around small niches that, when aggregated, have an important effect known as The Long Tail, first documented by Wired Magazine Editor Chris Anderson. People do this by leaving breadcrumbs of wisdom throughout their electronic pathways, which are then followed by others with similar ideals or values. Whether they use blogs, comments, emails, discussion groups or any other construct of the now known as Web 2.0, the ultimate effect is that of participation.

It took several decades and an industrial revolution to get workers around the world to participate in what was at the time an important battle to achieve fair labour conditions. What should we expect when all of the sudden people are devoting “8 hours” of their day developing their sense of participation and finding they have the power to shape society? What should the mantra of this upcoming revolution be? I suspect it will have something to do with the overwhelming power that corporations exercise in our lives and the devastating impact that globalization is having on all aspects of our culture. It will likely aim to establish a fair balance between a healthy economic engine and a sustainable approach to society.

It has been a century since people organized themselves to better their society. It’s about time we re-learn from their victories. I admit I was trying to revive the old spirit of May Day after all. Happy Labour Day!