Since 2019, this Nordic island of 370,000 inhabitants has managed to reduce the working time massively while maintaining its economic prosperity. Today, almost 90% of the Icelandic working population benefits from reduced schedules, fundamentally transforming the work relationship in this country.
A project under the study for ten years
The Icelandic experience of the 4 -day week started in 2015, with the implementation of a pilot project carried out until 2019. This project is one of the most ambitious on a global scale, with the aim of identifying the feasibility of a 4 -day week without a salary reduction. The project involved around 2,500 employees in the public sector, or more than 1% of the country’s working population. The weekly reduction in working time increased from around 40 hours to around 35-36 hours, while maintaining wages. This change was accompanied by a reorganization of work focused on productivity and efficiency.
In order to ensure quality monitoring and control, the results were analyzed by the British Autacyromy reflection group and by the Icelandic non -profit association Association for Sustainability and Democracy (Alda). The pilot project was successful by researchers, and Icelandic unions were able to negotiate a reduction in working time.
What are the results of the project?
The results were very positive on several levels. First of all, productivity, far from decreasing, in fact remained stable or even increased in the vast majority of organizations. This maintenance of performance is explained in particular by a better concentration of employees and an organization of more efficient tasks.
Socially and health, the impact is just as important. A large majority of employees (around 80 to 90%) have reported a significant improvement in their well-being, with less stress, and a balanced business life balance. Additional free time makes it possible to rest better, to devote more time to family and leisure, and to reduce the risks linked to professional exhaustion and burnout. At the same time, the unemployment rate in Iceland remained very low, around 3.4%, and indicates that the reduction in working time has not resulted in a loss of jobs.
Economically, Iceland still experiences greater growth than that of many other European countries, which shows that this reform has not slowed down the national economy, quite the contrary. Experience thus offers a model where quality of life at work, employee health, and productivity manage to cohabit effectively.
Does the model have limits?
Such a work model arouses many questions, mainly on the possibility of replicating it in different societies. Iceland has around 370,000 inhabitants, which greatly facilitates the implementation, monitoring and adaptation of social reforms. The Icelandic company is relatively homogeneous, and the reduced population allows better communication between social actors (employers, unions, government). In more populated countries, coordination and large -scale implementation can be more complex, especially in sectors where economic realities vary strongly.
Another important point: the Icelandic test was mainly conducted in the public sector and on trades often compatible with the adaptation of schedules (schools, social services, administrations). These sectors can more easily organize work flexibly and optimize tasks. The transition to 4 -day week in sectors with high industrial or commercial intensity, with various activity peaks, remains much more difficult to generalize without generating side effects.
The Icelandic culture also contributes to a relatively easy implementation of the new 4 -day week: consensus and confidence are raised between citizens, employers and public institutions, which creates an environment favorable to social experiments. The approach of Iceland is based on the Nordic model of social dialogue, and the unions have greatly helped to concretize the project.
Tests are underway in other European countries
Germany also carried out a 6 -month experiment in 2024 involving 45 companies and 900 employees. The effective reduction in working time was around 10% on a basis of 38.7 hours, also without salary loss. The results have shown maintenance or even an increase in productivity, better mental health and less stress for 90% of participants, which led 73% of companies to lasting this type of organization permanently.
For its part, Spain launched a national pilot in 2023 on 200 companies and 6,000 employees, with a week of 36 hours over 4 days, supported financially by the State. The first official results are expected.
Other countries like Belgium, the United Kingdom, Ireland and Portugal have also carried out experiments with similar results. Iceland remains the undisputed leader of the movement, with a really reduced and not condensed week in 4 more intense days, without subsidies. In France, a national experiment led by the 4 Day Week Global association involves voluntary companies, with flexible methods adapted to the specificities of participating companies.
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