Countries around the world have various amounts of time when it comes to working. Most actually have only five days of work each week, but here in the Philippines, workers have to go to the office for six days a week.
The Labor Code of the Philippines requires 48 hours of work each week. Other countries have more or less only 40 work-hours each week, like the United States. But others are actually moving towards an even shorter work week than five days! And it actually seems like they made the right decision.
Having a shorter work week has a lot more benefits than you’d think! Here are 6 reasons why we should have a shorter work week:
6. We can save on resources.
Having to go to the office for fewer days would eventually mean cutting down on utility costs—electricity, water, etc. Those things cost a whole lot.
Conserving resources is actually one of the reasons why the government office of La Union decided to enforce a 4-day work week for a month. The sweltering heat of the summer season would, of course, increase the need for air-conditioning which causes energy costs to spike up. So, it’s really a smart move by the provincial government to have a 4-day work week.
Less energy consumption in offices would also mean less harm to the environment.
The positive effect on the environment is actually one of the leading reasons why many countries have decided to have a shorter work week. Offices would have at least two days of a breather from all those chemicals being pumped into the atmosphere by our advancements in technology.
That’s at least two unplugged days for each office! Think about the long-term effects for the environment!
4. People can save more money.
With only five days (or less) required to go to the office, workers would have to spend a lot less on transportation. For the people who always buy food when they’re in the office, they wouldn’t have to spend too much on stress eating, too!
Having fewer days to go to work would cut down the costs that come with having to go to the office for most of the week. Think of all that money you spend in the office each day. Now think about having fewer days to spend on. Crazy, right?
3. People can spend more time with family.
Two whole days spent with your family is definitely much better than spending an hour or two after work with them. Sometimes, you can’t even catch your kids at home while they’re awake because of the unending traffic.
With at least two days off, workers will be able to spend a lot more time with their families. That will be at least two days of uninterrupted family time.
With more days for rest, workers will be a lot healthier! I’m sure you can agree that a few hours of sleep at night after a long day of stressful work and an even more stressful commute home, it’s hardly called rest.
Imagine two whole days that you have just to yourself and your family. Two days of sleeping in, two days without having to go and face the battlefield that is your daily commute.
It’s really no doubt that we all need rest. And with a shorter work week giving longer opportunities for rest, workers will find themselves more active and even readier for another week of work.
1. It will increase productivity.
There are theories that people will tend to do a lot more if there’s less time to do things. Gone will be the hours of procrastination and sending pointless emails to one another with the intention of pretending to work. Plus, with two days off, people will want to spend all that time on themselves and not doing jobs they should’ve done at work. Well, those are theories.
But what’s for sure is that people will be a lot rested after two days off (which we’ve established in the previous point), making them a lot more productive on the job.
So, see? It’s really a win-win situation for all of us! I honestly can’t see the downside of this proposal.
Is this convincing to you? Are there any points you’d like to add? Share it with us!
She loves discovering new places, dragging friends to said places, and initiating gimmicks--which is a nice way of saying "pasimuno." She's a broken soul that's been saved by grace. A film graduate from UP Diliman, a music enthusiast, a musician's wife, and a follower of Jesus. Follow her on TikTok and Instagram: @viviendelvalle
6 Reasons Why We Should Have A Shorter Work Week
Countries around the world have various amounts of time when it comes to working. Most actually have only five days of work each week, but here in the Philippines, workers have to go to the office for six days a week.
The Labor Code of the Philippines requires 48 hours of work each week. Other countries have more or less only 40 work-hours each week, like the United States. But others are actually moving towards an even shorter work week than five days! And it actually seems like they made the right decision.
Having a shorter work week has a lot more benefits than you’d think! Here are 6 reasons why we should have a shorter work week:
6. We can save on resources.
Having to go to the office for fewer days would eventually mean cutting down on utility costs—electricity, water, etc. Those things cost a whole lot.
Conserving resources is actually one of the reasons why the government office of La Union decided to enforce a 4-day work week for a month. The sweltering heat of the summer season would, of course, increase the need for air-conditioning which causes energy costs to spike up. So, it’s really a smart move by the provincial government to have a 4-day work week.
(Read more on that report here.)
5. It will be safer for the environment.
Less energy consumption in offices would also mean less harm to the environment.
The positive effect on the environment is actually one of the leading reasons why many countries have decided to have a shorter work week. Offices would have at least two days of a breather from all those chemicals being pumped into the atmosphere by our advancements in technology.
That’s at least two unplugged days for each office! Think about the long-term effects for the environment!
4. People can save more money.
With only five days (or less) required to go to the office, workers would have to spend a lot less on transportation. For the people who always buy food when they’re in the office, they wouldn’t have to spend too much on stress eating, too!
Having fewer days to go to work would cut down the costs that come with having to go to the office for most of the week. Think of all that money you spend in the office each day. Now think about having fewer days to spend on. Crazy, right?
3. People can spend more time with family.
Two whole days spent with your family is definitely much better than spending an hour or two after work with them. Sometimes, you can’t even catch your kids at home while they’re awake because of the unending traffic.
With at least two days off, workers will be able to spend a lot more time with their families. That will be at least two days of uninterrupted family time.
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2. Workers will be a lot healthier.
With more days for rest, workers will be a lot healthier! I’m sure you can agree that a few hours of sleep at night after a long day of stressful work and an even more stressful commute home, it’s hardly called rest.
Imagine two whole days that you have just to yourself and your family. Two days of sleeping in, two days without having to go and face the battlefield that is your daily commute.
It’s really no doubt that we all need rest. And with a shorter work week giving longer opportunities for rest, workers will find themselves more active and even readier for another week of work.
1. It will increase productivity.
There are theories that people will tend to do a lot more if there’s less time to do things. Gone will be the hours of procrastination and sending pointless emails to one another with the intention of pretending to work. Plus, with two days off, people will want to spend all that time on themselves and not doing jobs they should’ve done at work. Well, those are theories.
But what’s for sure is that people will be a lot rested after two days off (which we’ve established in the previous point), making them a lot more productive on the job.
So, see? It’s really a win-win situation for all of us! I honestly can’t see the downside of this proposal.
Is this convincing to you? Are there any points you’d like to add? Share it with us!
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About The Author
She loves discovering new places, dragging friends to said places, and initiating gimmicks--which is a nice way of saying "pasimuno." She's a broken soul that's been saved by grace. A film graduate from UP Diliman, a music enthusiast, a musician's wife, and a follower of Jesus. Follow her on TikTok and Instagram: @viviendelvalle