Is it time for a four-day working week in Czechia? Companies are divided

Recent news from neighboring Poland that its Labor Ministry is considering shortening its working week has prompted questions as to whether Czech companies may do the same. However, despite a higher amount of employees in Czechia wanting a four-day working week, the government and firms remain skeptical about an abridged week for staff.

More employees are in favor of a shorter working week. A 2023 survey from consulting group Moore Czech Republic found that 83 percent of 18 to 26-year-olds viewed a shorter week positively. However, this share is below 65 percent for those older than 36. A separate study by the Welcome to the Jungle found that, overall, seven in 10 Czechs would welcome a shorter working week.

“We are convinced that a higher offer of part-time jobs is a way to better connect the needs of employees and employers," consulting firm Deloitte, in a May survey on flexible working, quotes public relations manager Alza Eliška Čeřovská as saying.

Talking to Expats.cz last year, director of business services firm in Czechia ABSL Jonathan Appleton said a four-day working week in Czechia allows employers to “maintain and even strengthen the loyalty and satisfaction of their employees, which is today – when the shortage of quality candidates on the labor market prevails – very important. The feedback from employees is very positive.”

Czech Member of European Parliament Kateřina Konečná supports the idea, saying that: "At a time when technology is taking over a number of work tasks, I see no reason why people should still have to work the same working hours.”

Not everyone believes a shorter working week is possible. Czech member of parliament and Deputy Chairman of the Chamber of Deputies Jan Skopeček is more skeptical: "Our labor productivity is lower compared to more developed countries. If we don't want to get poorer, we can't afford it.”

CEO of job search website Welcome to the Jungle Jan Klusoň explains to Czech media outlet E15.cz why a shorter week can be unattractive for firms. “Most companies believe that reducing working hours by 20 percent will mean a 20-percent reduction in performance. But in reality, companies should provide their employees with new tools, simplify internal processes, and ensure a suitable work environment in order to improve overall work efficiency,” he notes.

Deloitte also found that Czechia’s current lack of employees is slowing down growth for companies. Worried that they won’t be able to maintain current productivity levels, most major firms therefore currently see a four-day week as a “utopia,” in the words of Deloitte.

A recent survey by professional services firm Colliers found that just 16 percent of all respondents say that four days per week would be “enough” to complete all their work. Over one-third of people are unable to complete their workload in the current five-day week, however.

Klusoň also admits that a shorter working week is simply inviable for many firms – particularly those that are tied with manufacturing. “Production plants with continuous shift operation would have to hire more employees to cover losses, which can be time-consuming, and financially and administratively very demanding." 

Some Czech firms have already begun trialing a four-day week. Among those is IT company Anect, which gives employees the option to work four days a week for 90 percent of their regular salary.

“At the moment, approximately one-tenth of employees are taking advantage of this benefit," human resources director Petra Marzini told business-focused Czech media outlet Hospodářské noviny (HN). Brno-based software company Phonexia also began offering its employees a shorter working week in 2023.

Teaching firm Digiskills, also based in Brno, has offered flexible working hours to its employees in such a way that employees are able to work one day less every week.

Around 1 percent of companies across the Czech Republic say they already offer four-day working weeks.

Deloitte notes that, while a four-day week is currently unattainable for many companies, firms are attempting to attract and retain employees by offering more part-time options and increasingly accommodating employees who return after parental leave by, for example, offering flexible conditions (such as remote working) on a person-by-person basis. 

Deloitte, however, notes that in the near future many companies will use artificial intelligence to help speed up processes and reduce dependence on workers. This should, in turn, increase the possibility of implementing a four-day working in Czechia. 

"We are looking for a balance between the necessary flexibility and maintaining a competitive advantage,” executive director of Czech engineering company Jiří Kabelka told HN, recognizing the growing importance of free time for the modern worker in Czechia. Welcome to the Jungle found that “working hours and workload” were the second-most important criteria for employees (at 94 percent), after pay.

On an international level, the Four-Day Week Global non-governmental organization is promoting a shorter work week for all countries. Belgium was the first country in Europe to legislate a four-day week (in 2022), and earlier this year in Germany some companies began trialing the shortened work week for six months. 

Furthermore, many UK companies, having successfully piloted a four-day work week for six months and deeming it "extremely successful," are now committed to making it a permanent arrangement.

In 2015-2019, Iceland experimented with a 35-36 hour workweek for 2,500 employees without reducing pay. Researchers discovered a decrease in worker stress and burnout, alongside an enhancement in the balance between life and work.