Researchers in a new report called the Iceland 4-Day workweek trials and experiments an “overwhelming success.”
“Worker wellbeing dramatically increased across a range of indicators, from perceived stress and burnout to health and work-life balance,” the report released Sunday stated. At the same time, “productivity and service provision remained the same or improved across the majority of trial workplaces.”
“Trials have shown that shortening working hours can have a powerful positive effect,” the report concluded.
Between 2015 and 2019, the Association for Sustainable Democracy in Iceland and the Autonomy think tank in the United Kingdom investigated 2,500 workers, or roughly 1% of Iceland’s working population, in two significant trials. The trials “not only aimed to improve work-life balance but also to maintain or increase productivity,” noted the report. There was no salary reduction for working 35 to 36 hours each week.
The studies took conducted in a range of settings. It was ranging from typical offices to preschools and hospitals, and also in both 9-to-5 and irregular hours. They were started by the Reykjavik City Council and the Icelandic national government. It was in response to union and social group efforts for shorter workweeks.
According to the research, 86 percent of Icelandic employees are currently working fewer hours or are “gaining the right to shorten their hours”. According to the researchers, the Iceland 4-Day workweek study might serve as a model for future studies in other nations.
