We spend the early portions of our life preparing to work a nine-to-five, Monday-to-Friday job, bracing ourselves for that structure of work. What if there was a better way, though?
A four-year-long study in Iceland has gathered mountains of evidence supporting the idea that shorter weeks are better for employees and employers. With reduced stress and better productivity, it was a turn for the better for all involved!
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Over in Iceland there has been quite the study going on, one that spanned over four years.
Association for Sustainability and Democracy (Alda) in Iceland and U.K. research thinktank Autonomy banded together to run the largest four-day work week trial ever. It ran from 2015-2019 and involved over 3000 workers.
The findings were just published, and they were nothing short of inspiring.
Working a four-day week, with hours reduced from 40 per week to 35, improved…well, everything.
Productivity either remained the same or increased, employee wellbeing was improved, stress went down, and work-life balance improved as employees were able to dedicate more time to their home life.
“This study shows that the world’s largest ever trial of a shorter working week in the public sector was by all measures an overwhelming success,” Will Stronge, Autonomy’s director of research, said in a statement . “It shows that the public sector is ripe for being a pioneer of shorter working weeks — and lessons can be learned for other governments.”
It was an extremely popular shift, with everyone seemingly enjoying the change.
“For me it is like a gift from the heavens,” said one manager in Reykjavík in the report, “and I like it a lot.”
The success of this trial has influenced Iceland’s trade unions to negotiate for permanently shorter weeks and reduced hours since 2019. Now, about 86% of the country’s workforce either has shorter hours or has the right to reduce their hours.
This is far from the only study happening about this topic, though all have the same results.
Microsoft Japan trialed a four-day week in 2019 that saw an increase in productivity, as did a 2018 run by Perpetual Guardian, a firm in New Zealand.
In fact, it’s been tried by so many different companies with the same results, that the 2018 International Labour Organisation report published a confirmation that shorter weeks make for better workers.
It’s some positive insight into the future of the modern employee.
“The Icelandic shorter working week journey tells us that not only is it possible to work less in modern times, but that progressive change is possible too,” said Gudmundur D. Haraldsson, an Alda researcher.
Here’s hoping that sentiment spreads across the world and encourages shorter weeks for all!
Last Updated on July 5, 2021 by Daniel Mitchell-Benoit
