More Countries Are Trying Out , Shorter Workweeks , for Overworked Employees.<br />'Newsweek' reports that Belgium has become <br />the latest country to offer workers the right <br />to a four-day workweek without loss of salary. .<br />According to a report by 'Bloomberg,' the move is intended, "to make Belgium's notoriously <br />rigid labor market more flexible.".<br />However, the same 'Bloomberg' report also <br />points out that employers are not required to <br />offer workers the option for a shorter workweek. .<br />The goal is to give people and companies <br />more freedom to arrange their work time, Alexander De Croo, Prime Minister <br />of Belgium, via 'Bloomberg'.<br />In July of 2021, CNBC reported that <br />85% of workers in Iceland were currently <br />working a four-day week, or would be soon. .<br />In many contemporary economies, there's <br />a growing sense that people are overworked. <br />In the U.K., for example, we know that 25% <br />of all workplace absences or sick days can <br />be traced back to stress generated by work, Jack Kellam, Researcher at Autonomy, via CNBC.<br />CNBC reports shorter workweeks have been <br />tested in Sweden, Spain and Japan. .<br />According to 'Newsweek,' pilot programs <br />to test shortened work schedules are set to <br />begin in the U.K., Ireland and the United States. .<br />Similar plans are also reportedly in the works <br />in Canada, Australia and New Zealand. .<br />According to a March 2020 Gallup poll, people who <br />work just four days a week report benefits that include , "significantly higher levels of well-being and <br />less likely to feel chronically burned out.".<br />According to a March 2020 Gallup poll, people who <br />work just four days a week report benefits that include , "significantly higher levels of well-being and <br />less likely to feel chronically burned out."
