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In The Netherlands /a lot/ of people work 4-day workweeks already [0]. It's not that novel. But it'd be good if more countries could largely make the switch. D
by wsc981 7y ago
In The Netherlands /a lot/ of people work 4-day workweeks already [0]. It's not that novel. But it'd be good if more countries could largely make the switch.
Due to the progressive tax in The Netherlands, working 5 days instead of 4 doesn't earn /that/ much more money and if you have toddlers, you will spend a day less for daycare, a day extra with your kids and probably have more time for the fun things in life as well.
As a salaried employee I often chose a 4-day workweek as well when living in The Netherlands. But once I started freelancing, the 5-day workweek seemed the better choice for me. As freelancer you are taxed a bit less compared to a salaried employee, so there's more incentive to make as much money as possible during the workweek.
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[0]: https://www.equaltimes.org/a-four-day-work-week-is-only-a#.XPxZxC2B27w https://www.equaltimes.org/a-four-day-work-week-is-only-a#.X...
- Freak_NL 7y agoAt my small (Dutch) company the standard contract is 36 hours, so most employees work 4 × 8. I have a four month old son, and my wife normally works 4 × 8 as well, but she does 3 × 8 + 4 until we find our bearings with the young one. That means two days of daycare (partly subsidized by the government), one day, each, at home with the child, and one day where she works from home for four hours. This is fairly typical for white collar workers in the Netherlands. Four days is more than enough for me.