Finland Is Considering 4-Day Workweeks With 6-Hour Workdays That Would Allow People To Spend More Time With Their Loved Ones
While most in the Western world work their butts off five days a week, eight hours a day, some companies and even countries are trying to hack the current system of productivity and introduce a four-day working week. There’s been an attempt of introducing this working schedule in Japan when Microsoft Japan carried out an experiment and tried introducing this new schedule. The results were beyond satisfying as the company noticed an almost 40 percent increase in productivity with its employees. Finland’s new prime minister Sanna Marin has some additional thoughts as to why this working schedule is beneficial for society and plans to introduce it in her country.
Update (01/08/20): After the news of Finland’s PM went viral worldwide, the Finnish government released a statement on the 7th of January, 2020, explaining that while this idea was brought up by the now-PM Sanna Marin before her election, it is not currently included in the Government’s agenda.
Finland’s new PM, Sanna Marin, is considering a four-day working week and six-hour-long shifts
Prior to starting her work as a prime minister of the Finnish government, 34-year-old Sanna Marit, who is currently the second youngest PM in the world, came up with a beautiful plan to send her country on a different course regarding the typical understanding of work hours. One of her plans was to introduce a four-day working week and six-hour shifts. She said then: “I believe people deserve to spend more time with their families, loved ones, hobbies and other aspects of life, such as culture. This could be the next step for us in working life.”
She believes the country would prosper even more if the citizens could spend more time with their families
Sanna Marin believes it’s important to allow Finnish citizens to work less. In her opinion, it is not in question of governing with a feminine style but offering help and keeping promises to voters. The neighboring country of Sweden might have been an example regarding her decision to decrease the length of a working week since they conducted an experiment in 2015 and trialed a six-hour working day. The results showed that employees were happier, wealthier and more productive.
Update: After the news of shortening the working week went viral, the Finnish Government released a statement saying the issue is not yet on the Government’s agenda
In the Finnish Government´s program there is no mention about 4-day week. Issue is not on the Finnish Government’s agenda. PM @marinsanna envisioned idea briefly in a panel discussion last August while she was the Minister of Transport, and there hasn’t been any recent activity.
— Finnish Government (@FinGovernment) January 7, 2020
People’s opinions about the topic are varying
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Share on FacebookBtw, these Scandi countries WORK. They have the best welfare services, best education, best gender equality. Yes they pay a lot of taxes: I'd be very happy to pay a lot of taxes and have excellent services in return. Also, Danish seem to be one of the happiest people in the world. No wonder, actually.
I am a weird Australian, I actually like paying my taxes. I believe an education population is healthier and happier. But I would be a terrible teacher. My taxes help fix that. Just one example. 2: A healthier and well fed population will have less internal strive: un-civil wars. Search Wikipedia " water conflict".
Load More Replies...NO WE ARE NOT. Something weird happened in the UK press and this became news. It's an idea that's brought up every now and then but it is not happening anytime soon.
Fake news... https://newsnowfinland.fi/politics/how-finlands-fake-four-day-week-became-a-fact-in-europes-media
Considering the astonishing advancements in artificial intelligence and the fact that less and less work will have to be done by humans/will be available for humans in the near future, this is a very wise decision.
So... how do you account for Finland's skyrocketing cost of living being paid by working 16 hours fewer a week?
Load More Replies...Not a fake news but ... she didn't said this as Prime Minister but in august 2019 as she was Minister of Transport and Communication Source: (in french) https://www.francetvinfo.fr/vrai-ou-fake/non-la-premiere-ministre-de-finlande-ne-vient-pas-de-proposer-la-semaine-de-quatre-jours_3773709.html
So what a out the people who get paid by hour? Is this just for salary workers?
It's a nice idea, but how does this work?? I need more information on this. Is this just minimum wage type jobs? What about the money people would be making in these cut hours?
They may be on the same wage... cut hours doesnt necessarily mean wage cut. It is better for human health having a work life balance... governments just need to realise this and change their laws and legislation 😅 so if cutting hours but not wages is the way it would work then that would need to be it
Load More Replies...I already work 4 day week (8h/day) and I can't say I hate it. I have more time with my family, and I have more time to rest and recharge my batteries for the next week. This is not for everyone though, only us who can manage with minimum wage :D
That sounds great, but I don't make enough to live working 8-10 hours a day, 5 days a week. But I live in Denver, no one can afford to live here anymore.
I would have had no trouble performing forty hours of work in twenty four hours, but most of my coworkers were pretty challenged with the forty. Then what about retail? Would stores need twice as many employees? Are people paid by the hour supposed to be paid more per hour? Or will they simply earn less? I don't think this plan has been thought through.
Apparently it's just for salaried workers.
Load More Replies...I don't think this would work, taxes would be raised so worker's wages could be raised to balance the total out.
More time to spend with dear ones she says? Well how about returning the astronomic number of children unnecessarily removed from good caring families and detained in 'care' facilities across Finland back to their dear ones first?
More time to spend with dear ones? Aha, good, they could start with the astronomic number of children unnecessarily kidnapped from their caring responsible families and detained in 'care' facilities all around Finland.
High production and high consumption have been chanted as a mantra in the modern world driven by Western culture/civilization, which has been exploiting/conquering nature and indigenous people all over the globe, and has been spreading like cancer cells by making so many humans addicted to it. But alas, even the almighty Western civilization doesn’t have the slightest chance to beat the challenges posed by sustainability. So, we now have to play a new game with new rules. What Finland is considering fits well with this new game. Yes, Finland can be a game-changer!
I'd say there are an incredible number of people who are totally ignorant with regard to even the most basic concepts of economics. I used to think it was a deficiency inside of government but the comments here indicate the general public is also clueless as to how economic value is created.
I worked for an office that adopted the German NO MORE FUN model. It was actually very fun. No birthday parties, no long lunches, no office supply shopping trips, no "personalized" cubicles. Come to work and WORK, then at 5pm, go home without taking work, getting calls-texts-emails. No overtime on weekends, either.
Those people who say it will not work should not stand in the way of those trying to do it. Being pessimist never helps anything.
Really appreciate Sanna Marin for this decision and the way her thoughts about peoples and care about their families is really appreciate her for this kind words towards their citizens they really happy to have Sanna Marin a person who care about humanity not business love from indian artist to Sanna Marin keep doing great work for peoples with positive humanity nature stay blessed always.
Only that it's not true. Please do your research, this was just a rumour that somehow leaked into the international press and people are going crazy about it without any reason. Don't believe everything you read in the Internet! Also see tweet from the Finnish government. days-5e160...a84ef9.png
You could fix that headline too as many people only read that instead of the whole article.
Good for some people, not good for others, divorce rates will probably skyrocket :P
This is fake news. And so is everything else about Finland being a happy country, Helsinki the best place to work/live. The taxation is very high and other employment laws and collective agreements very strict, and same for the whole country. Nothing better if you work in Helsinki. Only some foreign workers can have lower taxation and better agreements, but not permanently. The weather sucks nine months, it is dark four months in Helsinki. Really, they are fooling you to get more taxpayers! There are also not enough day care for children in Helsinki so, if you have a kid one parent cannot work. And rents are high. I would prefer Stockholm over HKI ANYTIME if I had the choice. Now there´s a laid-back work culture, good salaries (same tax as in FIN). But in Sweden you get more for the taxes than here.
I was just thinking the other day, work weeks should only be 4 days a week. it's so hard on children, it's heart breaking for them to be away from their parents so much. I remember how much my heart ached having my dad gone to work all the time :/ Canada you are supposed to be awesome should totally adopt this!
Cutting the work week results in lost “opportunity cost.” This is the lost potential sale, work order fulfillment, etc. This lowers revenue, which lowers pay, benefits, etc. This would lower standards of living while keeping the costs high. Not a good idea for the economy.
We could learn so much from them, but no, we elect the enemy of all things good to our highest office, and to the majority in the Senate. God help us correct this. So much permanent damage has been done it is horrifying, but we must never give up the fight to make our world a better place.
It might work in the short run but it will kill the economy in the long run. It is not sustainable.
Hmm, how do you get enough people to run hospitals, fire brigades, police ++++++ if they all work shorter and fewer days? Do the rest have to work longer?
Higher work productivity pays for this. The paradox is that longer shift may actually reduce the output for any job that requires high mentral or physical effort
Load More Replies...Isn't France going from a 35 hr workweek back to a 40, after trying this? Do we know why, if it's been tried?
If we could go from 60 hours to 46 to 40, why not to 30?
Load More Replies...Lazy a*s Europeans? Yeah, in the last 100 years we Finns built with laziness the best education system in the world, the best healthcare system and studies show that we have the happiest citizens of all countries. Shows how much you know about the world, you ignorant tit.
Load More Replies...Btw, these Scandi countries WORK. They have the best welfare services, best education, best gender equality. Yes they pay a lot of taxes: I'd be very happy to pay a lot of taxes and have excellent services in return. Also, Danish seem to be one of the happiest people in the world. No wonder, actually.
I am a weird Australian, I actually like paying my taxes. I believe an education population is healthier and happier. But I would be a terrible teacher. My taxes help fix that. Just one example. 2: A healthier and well fed population will have less internal strive: un-civil wars. Search Wikipedia " water conflict".
Load More Replies...NO WE ARE NOT. Something weird happened in the UK press and this became news. It's an idea that's brought up every now and then but it is not happening anytime soon.
Fake news... https://newsnowfinland.fi/politics/how-finlands-fake-four-day-week-became-a-fact-in-europes-media
Considering the astonishing advancements in artificial intelligence and the fact that less and less work will have to be done by humans/will be available for humans in the near future, this is a very wise decision.
So... how do you account for Finland's skyrocketing cost of living being paid by working 16 hours fewer a week?
Load More Replies...Not a fake news but ... she didn't said this as Prime Minister but in august 2019 as she was Minister of Transport and Communication Source: (in french) https://www.francetvinfo.fr/vrai-ou-fake/non-la-premiere-ministre-de-finlande-ne-vient-pas-de-proposer-la-semaine-de-quatre-jours_3773709.html
So what a out the people who get paid by hour? Is this just for salary workers?
It's a nice idea, but how does this work?? I need more information on this. Is this just minimum wage type jobs? What about the money people would be making in these cut hours?
They may be on the same wage... cut hours doesnt necessarily mean wage cut. It is better for human health having a work life balance... governments just need to realise this and change their laws and legislation 😅 so if cutting hours but not wages is the way it would work then that would need to be it
Load More Replies...I already work 4 day week (8h/day) and I can't say I hate it. I have more time with my family, and I have more time to rest and recharge my batteries for the next week. This is not for everyone though, only us who can manage with minimum wage :D
That sounds great, but I don't make enough to live working 8-10 hours a day, 5 days a week. But I live in Denver, no one can afford to live here anymore.
I would have had no trouble performing forty hours of work in twenty four hours, but most of my coworkers were pretty challenged with the forty. Then what about retail? Would stores need twice as many employees? Are people paid by the hour supposed to be paid more per hour? Or will they simply earn less? I don't think this plan has been thought through.
Apparently it's just for salaried workers.
Load More Replies...I don't think this would work, taxes would be raised so worker's wages could be raised to balance the total out.
More time to spend with dear ones she says? Well how about returning the astronomic number of children unnecessarily removed from good caring families and detained in 'care' facilities across Finland back to their dear ones first?
More time to spend with dear ones? Aha, good, they could start with the astronomic number of children unnecessarily kidnapped from their caring responsible families and detained in 'care' facilities all around Finland.
High production and high consumption have been chanted as a mantra in the modern world driven by Western culture/civilization, which has been exploiting/conquering nature and indigenous people all over the globe, and has been spreading like cancer cells by making so many humans addicted to it. But alas, even the almighty Western civilization doesn’t have the slightest chance to beat the challenges posed by sustainability. So, we now have to play a new game with new rules. What Finland is considering fits well with this new game. Yes, Finland can be a game-changer!
I'd say there are an incredible number of people who are totally ignorant with regard to even the most basic concepts of economics. I used to think it was a deficiency inside of government but the comments here indicate the general public is also clueless as to how economic value is created.
I worked for an office that adopted the German NO MORE FUN model. It was actually very fun. No birthday parties, no long lunches, no office supply shopping trips, no "personalized" cubicles. Come to work and WORK, then at 5pm, go home without taking work, getting calls-texts-emails. No overtime on weekends, either.
Those people who say it will not work should not stand in the way of those trying to do it. Being pessimist never helps anything.
Really appreciate Sanna Marin for this decision and the way her thoughts about peoples and care about their families is really appreciate her for this kind words towards their citizens they really happy to have Sanna Marin a person who care about humanity not business love from indian artist to Sanna Marin keep doing great work for peoples with positive humanity nature stay blessed always.
Only that it's not true. Please do your research, this was just a rumour that somehow leaked into the international press and people are going crazy about it without any reason. Don't believe everything you read in the Internet! Also see tweet from the Finnish government. days-5e160...a84ef9.png
You could fix that headline too as many people only read that instead of the whole article.
Good for some people, not good for others, divorce rates will probably skyrocket :P
This is fake news. And so is everything else about Finland being a happy country, Helsinki the best place to work/live. The taxation is very high and other employment laws and collective agreements very strict, and same for the whole country. Nothing better if you work in Helsinki. Only some foreign workers can have lower taxation and better agreements, but not permanently. The weather sucks nine months, it is dark four months in Helsinki. Really, they are fooling you to get more taxpayers! There are also not enough day care for children in Helsinki so, if you have a kid one parent cannot work. And rents are high. I would prefer Stockholm over HKI ANYTIME if I had the choice. Now there´s a laid-back work culture, good salaries (same tax as in FIN). But in Sweden you get more for the taxes than here.
I was just thinking the other day, work weeks should only be 4 days a week. it's so hard on children, it's heart breaking for them to be away from their parents so much. I remember how much my heart ached having my dad gone to work all the time :/ Canada you are supposed to be awesome should totally adopt this!
Cutting the work week results in lost “opportunity cost.” This is the lost potential sale, work order fulfillment, etc. This lowers revenue, which lowers pay, benefits, etc. This would lower standards of living while keeping the costs high. Not a good idea for the economy.
We could learn so much from them, but no, we elect the enemy of all things good to our highest office, and to the majority in the Senate. God help us correct this. So much permanent damage has been done it is horrifying, but we must never give up the fight to make our world a better place.
It might work in the short run but it will kill the economy in the long run. It is not sustainable.
Hmm, how do you get enough people to run hospitals, fire brigades, police ++++++ if they all work shorter and fewer days? Do the rest have to work longer?
Higher work productivity pays for this. The paradox is that longer shift may actually reduce the output for any job that requires high mentral or physical effort
Load More Replies...Isn't France going from a 35 hr workweek back to a 40, after trying this? Do we know why, if it's been tried?
If we could go from 60 hours to 46 to 40, why not to 30?
Load More Replies...Lazy a*s Europeans? Yeah, in the last 100 years we Finns built with laziness the best education system in the world, the best healthcare system and studies show that we have the happiest citizens of all countries. Shows how much you know about the world, you ignorant tit.
Load More Replies...
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