Working more doesn't always mean more output, according to these researchers
ABCIn many ways, working too much was not a bad problem to have in 2020, when you consider the 1 million Australians who were out of work. Key points: A study by global accountancy software company QuickBooks found a correlation between a shorter work week and higher productivity The authors found Australians work 34.6 hours a week on average, assuming four weeks holiday New Zealand company Unilever is moving to a four-day work week but paying staff for five to improve company performance But is putting in extra hours at the office really worth it from an output and economic point of view? The study shows our neighbours on the other side of the Indian Ocean have the longest working week — people in South Africa work an average 2,209 hours a year. The authors found we work 1,665 hours a year — an average 34.6-hour working week, assuming four weeks holiday — and our GDP is $US1.38 trillion. "The experience of lockdown is prompting companies to really explore transitions to new, more agile ways of working," said the head of the UTS Business School's Department of Management, Professor Bronwen Dalton.
History of this topic
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