15 Countries With 4-Day Work Week Policies
This post was originally written on January 3, 2022. Every time a notable four-day work week country announcement comes out, we update the post. Most recently, this post was updated on October 5, 2024.
Here are all of the countries with four-day weeks in some form. They’ve either 1) implemented a four-day work week law, 2) proposed a new bill, or 3) are trialing it in some way. You’ll see I included city, state, and county governments as well to give a full picture of the movement from the public sector. I’ll update the list every time a notable announcement comes out.
13 Countries With Four-Day Work Week Programs
South Korea
Four-day policy: Trial, Optional
Start date: September 10, 2024
Source: “Workers from over 50 organizations will have the option to have a four-day workweek. They can choose from a four-day week every fortnight or shortened hours each week.”
Dominican Republic
Four-day policy: Trial, 36 Hours
Start date: February 1, 2024
Source: “Employees will earn same salary but hours will be reduced from 44 to 36 hours as part of national voluntary trial, says government.”
Australia
Four-day policy: Trial, Recommendation
Trial #2 recommendation date: September 13, 2023
Source: “Congratulations to the ACT for recommending a four-day week trial of the public service! This trial is for reduced hours, with no loss in pay! We are so excited to see Canberra move towards a four-day week.”
Trial #1 start date: August 1, 2022
Source: “In Australia’s six-month pilot, to begin in August, employees at 20 companies work one less day a week with no cut to their pay.”
Learn more about the average work week in Australia.
Brazil
Four-day policy: Trial, 32 Hours
Start date: September 5, 2023
Source: “Starting tomorrow, September 5, twenty Brazilian companies with more than 400 employees will participate in an experiment to test a four-day workweek in practice.”
Scotland
Four-day policy: Trial, 32 Hours
Start date: September 5, 2023
Source: In the coming year, under public service reform, Yousaf’s PFG states: “Commence the Four Day Working Week public sector pilot by the end of this calendar year, to assess the wellbeing, environmental, and productivity benefits the Four Day Working Week could bring.”
Portugal
Four-day policy: Trial, 32 Hours
Start date: June 1, 2023
Source: “For the next six months, 39 private-sector businesses in the country will participate in a ‘government-funded’ pilot program in partnership with 4 Day Week Global.“
South Africa
Four-day policy: Trial, Non-Government
Start date: February 1, 2023
Source: “4 Day Week South Africa director Karen Lowe said a four-day work week pilot will start in South Africa in February 2023. She added that 20 companies have signed up for the trial, and the pilot will run for six months.”
Lithuania
Four-day policy: Permanent (For Parents Only), 32 Hours
Start date: April 21, 2022
Source: “Lithuania is the latest country to try out a four-day workweek, thanks to a policy passed by lawmakers yesterday (April 21). Under the new policy, which will take effect next year, public-sector employees with children under the age of three will be allowed to work 32 hours a week without any reduction in their pay. A standard workweek in Lithuania is 40 hours.”
Learn more about Lithuania’s 4-day work week.
Belgium
Four-day policy: Permanent, 38 Hours
Start date: February 15, 2022
Source: “Workers in Belgium will soon be able to choose a four-day week under a series of labour market reforms announced on Tuesday. The reform package agreed by the country’s multi-party coalition government will also give workers the right to turn off work devices and ignore work-related messages after hours without fear of reprisal.”
Learn more about Belgium’s 4-day work week.
United Kingdom
Four-day policy: Trial, Non-Government Bill
Start date: January 18, 2021
Non-government pilot: “The U.K. pilot of a four-day work week will begin in June with about 30 companies that have so far signed up for the trial. The six-month long program will see firms allowing staff to work 32 hours per week while leaving their compensation and benefits unchanged.”
Bill: September 25, 2022 – “A four-day work week bill was proposed in the United Kingdom. The bill will be discussed in the House of Commons on October 18, 2022.”
Source: October 8, 2023 – “The 4-day week is gaining momentum through policy changes such as this motion passed at The Green Party conference.”
Learn more about the four-day work week in the UK.
United Arab Emirates
Four-day policy: Permanent, 36 Hours (4.5 Day Week)
Start date: December 7, 2021
Source: “The United Arab Emirates is moving federal employees to a four-and-a-half day work week to “boost productivity and improve work-life balance,” the government announced Tuesday.
Ireland
Four-day policy: Trial, Non-Government
Start date: Oct 31, 2021
Source: “So far, 20 companies have signed up to the six-month pilot, which will involve them trialing a reduction of working hours from February 2022.”
Spain
Four-day policy: Trial, 32 Hours
Start date: Proposed: September 1, 2021
Source: “When the progressive party Más País launched in 2019, it included the 4-day work week as part of its platform, and went on to propose the trial that won the Spanish government’s approval in January. Although the specifics remain undecided, the pilot, which is expected to launch in September and last three years, will use 50 million euros in European Union funding to compensate an estimated 200 companies for reducing their employees’ work week to 32 hours—without cutting their salaries.”
Source: October 8, 2023 – “Four-day work weeks improved Spanish workers’ health such as by lowering stress while reducing fuel emissions and benefiting children, a pilot programme shows.”
Learn more about Spain’s 4-day work week pilot.
Japan
Four-day policy: Recommendation
Start date: June 24, 2021
Source: “The country’s annual economic policy guidelines, released this month, unveiled plans to push employers to adopt four-day workweeks, marking official acceptance of a once-fringe approach.”
Learn more about Japan’s 4-day week recommendation.
Iceland
Four-day policy: Trial, 36 Hours
Start date: 2014 – 2021
Source: “The trials were conducted between 2015 and 2019, initiated by the Reykjavik City Council and the Icelandic national government. The trials ultimately involved 2,500 workers, more than 1 percent of the nation’s working population, who moved from working 40 hours a week to a 35- or 36-hour week, without a reduction in pay.”
Learn more about Iceland’s 4-day work week story.
Four-Day Work Week Bills
Country | Bill Date | Status | Source |
 | March 14, 2024 | Proposed | "Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., held a hearing Thursday on a bill he introduced to reduce the standard U.S. workweek to four days without loss of pay. The bill, titled the 'Thirty-Two Hour Work Week Act,' would reduce the standard workweek from 40 to 32 hours over the span of four years." |
| | Jan 18, 2023 | Proposed Trial | WMAR 2 News: |
 | 2014 - 2021 | Trial, Ended | Washington Post: |
 India | Dec 20, 2021 | Proposed 48 Hours | "If the new labour codes are implemented, there's a likelihood that employees in India may be able to enjoy a four-day workweek from next year, as opposed to the current five-day workweek. In that case, however, employees will have to work for 12 hours on those four days since the labour ministry has made it clear that even if the proposal comes through, the 48-hour weekly work requirement has to be met." |
 Canada | December 6, 2021 | Proposed | Legislative Assembly of Ontario: |
| | Dec 7, 2021 | Proposed 32 Hours | Business Insider: |
 United Arab Emirates | December 7, 2021 | Trial 36 Hours | The United Arab Emirates is moving federal employees to a four-and-a-half day work week to "boost productivity and improve work-life balance," the government announced Tuesday. |
 | February 15, 2022 | Passed 38 Hours | Euronews: |
 | February 17, 2022 | Trial 32 hours | "Spain has announced that it will experiment with a trial four-day workweek, according to the Guardian. The Spanish government agreed to a 32-hour workweek over three years, without cutting workers’ compensation." |
 Malta | February 25, 2022 | Trial 32 hours | Businesses would be given incentives to participate in a national four-day week trial, under a PN government. The proposal, announced in the party's election manifesto on Thursday night, is part of a new 'social pact' that also includes the introduction of a living wage. The PN's manifesto gave no detail about how the scheme would work or what incentives would be offered. |
 | June 24, 2021 | Proposed 32 Hours | Washington Post: |
 | September 3, 2021 | Trial 32 Hours |
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 | April 21, 2022 | Passed |
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 | September 25, 2022 | Proposed | BBC: |
How We Define The Status Of Each Bill
- Proposed: This is a suggested law, a bill, currently in the state or country’s legislative process. It hasn’t yet been passed into law or denied.
- Passed: This was a former bill that has been voted on affirmatively, but hasn’t yet been turned into a law.
- Law: This was a former bill that has passed and is now a binding rule in the country.
- Trial: This is a government-sanctioned test of a four-day (or 32-hour) work week, but not a bill.
See Also:
- Average Work Hours Per Week For Every Country
- How Many Work Hours & Days Are In A Month? [2023]
- Every Company Doing A 4-Day Work Week
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