The idea came from a British guy called Robert Owen in the 19th century. It was a huge step forward in workers rights seeing as it was fairly normal for factories to work from sunrise to sunset to try and maximise their output.

Typical working hours were 10-18 hrs a day 6 to 7 days a week

I'm not saying I love working 8hrs a day and modern society can definitely do better but this was a positive step forward in history and should be celebrated... celebrated isn't quite the right word but I hope you get what I mean

Whoever invented the eight hour five day work week is Satan.

Unions. Unions won the five day eight hour workweek after heavy, sometimes bloody conflicts with employers. Before that it was common for workweek to be 10 or 12 hours a day.

Op, you don't seem aware that getting the work week down to this took a very concerted effort

Keep in mind that once upon a time it was 6 days and 14 hours per day.

Labor unions are the Satan to which you are referring. Labor unions brought you many infernal things: the weekend, lunch breaks, paid vacation, social security, minimum wage, FMLA, 8-hour work days, OSHA, sick leave, child labor laws, etc.

Satan indeed!

The guy who made the 8hr/day 5day/week schedule was a saint

What a shitty take. Go learn what the normal conditions were BEFORE the 8/day 5/week standard.

Is anyone going to tell them what it was before?

Greetings from Scotland, I'd gladly take a 40 minute workday 🤣

What? Here in India it's 12 hrs a day 7 days a week. One paid holiday per year, For the new year

It used to be dawn till dusk 6 days a week, bro.

I live above the arctic circle, please don't make me work 24/7 during the summer since the sun is always out.

I'd love the part where I wouldn't have to work November through January though.

I don't want my work day tied to length of sunlight in either direction. But I do want a four day work week!

Rather, "whoever invented weekends was a genius."

Yeah, I try to be grateful for the progress we have made, given that labor used to be even more exploitative than it is now. Still, we have miles to go.

I am not a religious person, but I'm sure that 40 working hours per week is not even close to what is attributed to Satan.