Finland’s forward-thinking Prime Minister has called for a four-day working week, with the added bonus of six-hour days.
Sanna Marin—Finland’s newly elected PM and the youngest female head of government in the world—reckons this change would boost productivity and increase happiness. Well, duh!
Marin recently told NewEurope that “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.”
The initiative hasn’t been confirmed, but the idea sounds pretty brilliant. If it goes ahead, Finland will move from a similar schedule to here in the UK—working eight hours a day for five days a week—to a flexible six-hour, four-day working week. Ultimately, Marin’s proposition would result in sixteen hours of extra time a week. Think of all the Brooklyn 99 episodes and true crime dramas we could watch in that time!
Of course this shorter working week thing is already happening in Sweden, after a successful trial back in 2015. And Finland already have a flexible working pattern that allows most employees to adjust their day by working either three hours earlier or later. With this in mind, I think we can reasonably conclude that we’re all far more suited to Swedish and Finnish lifestyles. I am out of here.
Serious about getting the hell out of here? Check out our guide to the best places to travel in 2020. It may only be holiday inspo but, let’s face it, it’ll do.