> Instead, it appears that many ancient peoples worked less than eight hours per day

This statement is technically correct if you let the word “many” do the heavy lifting and ignore the people doing the work (slaves, etc)

Claiming that average life in the past was easier is just false, though. If it was easier to shelter, feed, and clothe yourself in the past then those methods wouldn’t have disappeared. You’d be able to do them now if you wanted to. Easier than before, in fact, because you can walk to the store and buy some wood instead of chopping down trees by hand and letting them dry for a few seasons before building, and so on.