Towards a more equitable division of labour

A recent report from New Zealand may not please the majority of employers. It said a business company in that country has succeeded in a trial of four-day workweeks, so much so that the firm plans to adopt the measure permanently, saying it resulted in greater productivity and enabled employees to balance work and family life.
Singapore, meanwhile – facing a manpower shortage compounded by a looming crisis over its ageing society – has gone more or less the opposite route. Singaporean retirees have been rehired and are providing a solution to the looming labour shortfall, however temporary their contribution.
Both measures are praiseworthy in terms of human welfare. New Zealand’s experiment is significant because the country has an issue with low productivity. The firm testing the arrangement reported a considerable decrease in the time staff was spending on social media and other non-work-related activities. It will next have to find a way to prevent such habits from creeping back in, shortened hours notwithstanding.
Singapore, in bringing retirees back into the workforce, has eased the burden on younger workers and is maintaining the self-esteem of its senior citizens, since retirement can leave people feeling unneeded and depressed. Companies there are reportedly allowing older staff members more flexible working hours.
The New Zealand firm, which deals in estate wills and trust funds, conducted its eight-week experiment earlier this year and saw its 240-strong workforce in 60 offices retain full pay despite the three-day weekends. The trial confirmed research findings that working fewer hours resulted in improved productivity. German workers are considered among the most efficient in the world even though they work fewer hours than people in most countries.
The average New Zealander worked 1,752 hours in 2016, compared with the 1,363 hours put in by the average German. English workers were on the job 1,676 hours on average but were 27 per cent less productive than Germans. It’s this matter of productivity that results in clashes between labour-rights activists and labour pragmatists, the latter citing the sluggish global economy and generally high unemployment rates. In most countries, shortened workweeks represent an impossible dream. Workers fret that they can be readily replaced. Employers fear that the trimmed hours would put them out of business and that the status quo would be extremely difficult to restore.
The experiment in New Zealand addresses the major issue of productivity, but balancing work and family lives is up to everyone involved – the employers, the employees, the government as a facilitator and the lawmakers. While employers need to be accommodating and understanding, employees must overcome fears of a slippery slope towards bad habits returning, which would only worsen the situation for employers. If effectively implemented, the shorter workweek aligns well with re-employing retirees.
At a time when technology threatens jobs and the issue of ageing populations worries employers, labour welfare is becoming an extremely complicated matter. Humanitarian measures have to take into account tough and pressing realities. There is no single solution that can accommodate all demands or needs, so combining measures like the ones in New Zealand and Singapore can be a good way to go, provided everyone is ready to give as well as take.