14.4.2021 KROUPA, Aleš – KYZLINKOVÁ, Renata – LEHMANN, Štěpánka – SEDLÁR, Jan – ŠPAČEK, Ondřej – VEVERKOVÁ, Soňa
Zkracování pracovní doby [Reduction of working hours]. Praha: RILSA, 2020. 89 p. ISBN 978-80-7416-394-4 (print); 978-80-7416-395-1 (pdf)
The publication summarizes the experience of countries that have introduced reduced working hours and shows that its introduction can mean an increase in labour migration, even illegal migration, and at the same time can lead some employers to increase the overtime.
On the contrary, the positive effects reported at the international level in connection with the reduction of working hours include, in particular, improved health, less stress, better mental well-being of workers, and more opportunities to reconcile family and professional life.
Higher-level collective agreements and company collective agreements are important tools for implementing reduced working hours. In some sectors of the Czech national economy, reduced working hours introduced by collective agreements have been the standard for many years.
The quantification of the national economic impact after the widespread introduction of reduced working hours in the range of 37.5 hours was performed based on model assumptions of compensation for labour shortages. The analysis quantified the potential impact of the introduced measure on the average annual decline in GDP (simulated for 20 years) at 0.41%, respectively, compared to economic development without a reduction in working hours. The largest average annual decline in GDP of about 0.83% due to a reduction in working hours at 20 years would be achieved by the manufacturing industry.
