[[Robert Owen]] telah meningkatkan thetuntutan demand for a tensepuluh-hourjam daysehari as early asseawal [[1810]], anddan institutedmelaksanakannya itdalam inenterprise hissosialnya socialist enterprise atdi [[New Lanark]]. As early asSeawal [[1817]] hedia hadtelah formulatedmerangkakan the goal of thematlamat ''eightlaman-hourjam daysehari'' and coineddan themencipta slogan '''Lapan jam kerja, Lapan jam berrekreasi, Lapan jam berehat'''. WomenWanita anddan childrenkanak-kanak indi England werediberikan granted the tensepuluh-hourjam daysehari inpada [[1847]]. FrenchPekerja workers[[Perancis]] wonmemenangi thedua twelve-hourbelas dayjam aftersehari theselepas Februaryrevolusi revolutionFebruary ofpada [[1848]]. AHari shorterbekerja workinglebih daypendek anddan improvedpeningkatan workingkeadaan conditionsbekerja wasmerupakan partsebahagian ofdaripada thebangkangan generalumum protestsdan andmeresahkan agitation forbagi [[Chartism|Chartist]] reforms, and the earlydan organisationorganisasi ofawal [[tradepesartuan unionpekerja]]s.
The [[International Workingmen's Association]] took up the demand for an eight-hour day at its convention in Geneva in August [[1866]] declaring ''The legal limitation of the working day is a preliminary condition without which all further attempts at improvements and emancipation of the working class must prove abortive'' and ''The Congress proposes eight hours as the legal limit of the working day.''
