In 2015, Iceland began an experiment that tested the concept of the four-day week. The results are clear.
Where is the 4-day week a big success? In 2015, Iceland launched what was then the world’s largest experiment in reducing working hours.
2,500 employees from 100 companies and authorities reduced their average weekly working hours from 40 to up to 35 hours – with the same pay. Success didn’t take long to arrive. Just a few years later, the experiment became part of everyday life for a large proportion of Icelandic employees (via Contrast).
A study by the British Autonomy Institute and the Icelandic Association for Sustainability and Democracy (Alda) now sheds light on the exact effects on the people and the economy of the island state (via autonomy.work)
However, young people from Gen Z should not be surprised: in a survey that we also reported on, 81 percent said they were convinced of exactly this: work less and still be more productive.
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What does the 4-day week bring to Iceland’s workers? In the study, most people are very satisfied with the shorter working hours:
At the same time, the survey shows that companies or authorities are not suffering from the changes. Sick days decreased, but productivity increased. This was achieved by introducing additional digital tools and restructured work processes.
For example, meetings have been scaled back on average. A result that fits well with a trend shown by a study by an IT giant: “Maximum human inefficiency” – Microsoft explains why we do so incredibly little work in the office.
How many people now work less than before? According to the study, 71 percent in the public sector at the state level and 57 percent in the urban public sector had reduced their working hours by the end of the survey period. The private sector brought up the rear at 41 percent. What it looks like today is unknown.
How is the economy developing? For example, Iceland’s gross domestic product (GDP) grew by five percentage points in 2023 while Germany’s economy shrank by 0.3 percentage points. According to further forecasts, Iceland, Germany and other European countries will outperform in economic development in the coming years (via Federal Statistical Office (Statista): Iceland and Germany).
Looking at these statistics for the EU at Statista shows that between 2022 and 2023, Iceland, with its nine and the already mentioned five percent, left almost all EU countries behind.
Employees of a major industrial nation, which many of you know primarily as the creator of legendary game series, have little use for the 4-day week. By law they are allowed to work less, but they categorically reject this: In one country, people work more than they have to and voluntarily give up the four-day week