4-day workweek: which countries are implementing pilot projects without lowering wages?

Marina Vanni

More flexibility, less stress, and equal productivity: these are some of the arguments put forward by advocates of the 4-day workweek. With the rise of remote employment and the growing interest in work-life balance, the debate on reducing the number of hours without cutting paychecks continues to gain traction.

In Germany, consulting firm Intraprenör and 4 Day Week Global are promoting a pilot project whose goal is for the 50 participating companies to achieve 100% of their objectives in 20% less time. The test, which will run from February to December 2024, requires companies to evaluate results for at least six months.
However, there are voices against the initiative. German Finance Minister Christian Lindner rejected the idea of the 4-day workweek saying that "never in history has a society increased its prosperity by working less."

Portugal, which in 2021 passed a law banning employers from contacting employees outside of working hours, has joined the trend, as thirty-nine private sector companies are participating in a government-funded trial of reduced hours.

Spain is also implementing a €9.6 million government program for industrial companies with fewer than 250 employees to test the reduction of the workweek for at least two years.

Previous trials in other countries around the world have shown positive signs. Such was the case in Iceland, which experimented with a reduced hours model between 2015 and 2019. In Australia and New Zealand, Unilever led a pilot project.

The United Kingdom followed in the same footsteps last year: 2,900 employees from 61 companies took part in the trial that experts called a resounding success. Workers reported feeling more satisfied and less stressed, while companies registered similar or even higher earnings than before.

In Canada, the first large-scale pilot program involving 41 companies had a 100% success rate, according to data from the Boston College and 4 Day Work Week Global study. Corporate profits grew by 15% and employees’ physical and mental health improved.

Belgium, for its part, has already legislated the reduced workweek, while maintaining 40 working hours as the standard. In February 2022, it was approved to give workers the possibility to work four days a week, but with more intense schedules.

Although the 4-day work week has other advantages, for example retaining talent in companies and minimizing the environmental impact, some detractors mention cons such as the difficulties to apply this model in certain industries.

Author: Marina Vanni