"The Iceland story offers a very different vision to countries across Europe that are grappling with low productivity but trying the same old failed methods," said one researcher.
Encouraging. However, there seems to be a question missing in the discussion: why aren’t more people taking the reduced hour offerings?
According to the report itself, after the first stage of trial, 86% of the working population started to negotiate for reduced hours, of the people surveyed, 51% were offered reduced hours and only 14% took them. It’s an unprecedented large proportion, but still less than one would expect given the benefits. There are other factors preventing people to do so. I hope there will be a follow-up research to find out why.
I think it’s probably like the other commenter said, just money. I think it may be “the other thing”? Where you can have whatever rules and policies in place at the govt level, but if there’s a “work hard / sacrifice for dumb reasons” culture solidly entrenched at work…well, writing’s on the wall. Do that or be soft-ostracized.
I do think the rules make an impact anywhere there’s a functioning government, just by slowly shifting what people see (accept?) as “normal”.
Between 2015 and 2019, following discussions between public sector
employers and trade unions, Iceland saw two major public sector trials
of a shorter working week for no loss in pay.
Encouraging. However, there seems to be a question missing in the discussion: why aren’t more people taking the reduced hour offerings?
According to the report itself, after the first stage of trial, 86% of the working population started to negotiate for reduced hours, of the people surveyed, 51% were offered reduced hours and only 14% took them. It’s an unprecedented large proportion, but still less than one would expect given the benefits. There are other factors preventing people to do so. I hope there will be a follow-up research to find out why.
I think it’s probably like the other commenter said, just money. I think it may be “the other thing”? Where you can have whatever rules and policies in place at the govt level, but if there’s a “work hard / sacrifice for dumb reasons” culture solidly entrenched at work…well, writing’s on the wall. Do that or be soft-ostracized.
I do think the rules make an impact anywhere there’s a functioning government, just by slowly shifting what people see (accept?) as “normal”.
People barely survive on their income as it is, that’s why
From the study: