Companies in Belgium remain reluctant to reduce weekly working hours, according to a recent pilot study by the Federal Planning Bureau in collaboration with the University of Ghent.
Since the Covid pandemic, Europe has seen a renewed interest in four-day work weeks as a way to improve the work-life balance of employees.
In Belgium, the idea of collective reductions in working time (RWT) has been encouraged financially for over two decades. Since 2004, there has been a federal financial scheme whereby employers are offered (temporary) reductions in their social security contributions if they reduce weekly working time to below 38 hours. This can be done via four-day work weeks or other approaches.
But even with financial incentives in place, the uptake of the shorter work weeks has remained limited. The previous De Croo federal government set out to investigate the trend through a pilot study. However, even the study itself struggled to garner enough enthusiasm from Belgian companies.
What's holding Belgium back?
The pilot study required companies to reduce working hours by at least two hours per week without any effect on wages. This had to be applicable to their entire workforce or a clearly defined group within the organisation.
Despite an extensive three-month recruitment campaign, featuring webinars and media coverage, only one company fully participated in the pilot project.
While this limited the report's conclusions, a series of parallel interviews helped shed light on what is holding Belgian companies back from shorter work weeks.
According to the report, convincing companies to offer reduced working hours is dependent on several conditions. This includes clarity on the benefits of the measure, confidence in the practicality of the approach and financial feasibility, as well as legal clarity and political support. Moreover, factors concerning reputation, teamwork and sectoral expectations were raised in the interviews.
Strikingly, which conditions were considered obstacles or incentives for embracing reduced working hours varied depending on the specific context of each company.
The report further noted that the successful adoption of the shorter work week depends on an "and-and-and" logic. This means that all the enabling requirements must align. If even one enabling condition was missing, companies tended to delay or abandon the idea of a collective RWT.
More than just money
Although the number of participants in the study was not exactly what was desired, the pilot project outlined a series of steps to entice Belgian companies to adopt the system.
For the researchers, one area to be improved is the level of awareness of the initiative. "Both about what collective RWT entails, how it differs from related concepts, and what support measures currently exist."
Additionally, legal uncertainties need to be clarified. This includes reported tensions between the RWT measure and wage legislation for example.
While the researchers believe the existing financial incentives need to be reviewed to prompt changes at a structural level, they underscored the importance of providing financial support, professional guidance, and the ability to participate in pilot projects.
Among the recommendations, the researchers further note that while their study focused on employer-driven RWT, this model can be implemented at different levels, including via sectoral agreements or national legislative changes.
The pilot study was conducted by the Federal Planning Bureau and the University of Ghent. It was funded by the Belgian Science Policy Office, Belspo.
