Question

Numerous television shows, advertisements and movies comment on the world of work. Even though work is considered essential in the U.S. culture, it is rarely portrayed as fulfilling and worthwhile. In fact, Americans work up to 8 weeks more per year than Europeans. Americans have the longest work week, with a current average of 47 hours. In many countries, including Italy, Greece, and Spain, a mid-afternoon break is scheduled during the regular workday, in which workers take a few hours off to eat and take a nap. What impact do you think a transition to a more European approach to “work” (work day structure/vacation) would have on the American economy? Factor in the role of capitalism versus other economic structures.

Answer 1

Retaining quality talent and providing a sense of ownership amongst the employees are two factors crucial to a business's success. In order to attain so, the most crucial aspect is the work environment/culture promoted by the organization. Work environments have a significant role to play in motivating the employees, promoting job satisfaction and boosting team morale. Every aspect is important while defining work structures/environments - the company's location, facilities, employee interactions, future, growth opportunities, and others. Positive work environments encourage employees to show up enthusiastic every day.

Before we dive into the discussion about the respective work structures of the United States of America and Europe, let's first identify the basics that need to be considered while setting up a positive and healthy work structure and environment for employees which include characteristics that are universally acceptable:

• Facilitating increase in productivity across all hierarchies,
• Encouraging peer learning and a collaborative environment,
• Treating all employees equally (revoke partiality),
• Creating a culture of appreciation,
• Creating policies that are employee-friendly with practical guidelines,
• Focused on mentorship-based leadership,
• Promoting team building activities.

The aforementioned characteristics focus on ensuring the employees feel protected and happy with increased onus towards their responsibility as they invoke a sense of "being cared for" by the employers. Now that we have established certain agreeable factors to create a healthy working structure and environment, let's analyze a few important characteristics of the work structures with the US and Europe.

In the United States of America, the main characteristics of work culture include, but isn't limited to:

• maximizing working hours at the office to ensure employees are adhering to work timings established,
• result-oriented performance reviews and appraisals,
• only a few companies in recent times have work from home options limited to certain positions within the organization,
• increased pressure at work discourages the workers from taking a break at work,
• increased culture of having meals at their respective desks also discourages movement around the workplace,
• lack of assurance and availability of paid leaves for personal/family issues and/or vacations.

In Europe, the main characteristics of work culture include, but isn't limited to:

• increased focus on flexible working hours during the week, with an average of around 28 working hours per week across all countries in the EU,
• increased access to paid annual leaves (ranging between 28 - 30 days in a year),
• a few other stand-outs need to be listed country by country:
  • in France, there is a law 'right to disconnect' which allows anyone working for an organization over 50 employees do not have to check or respond to emails out of working hours,
  • Denmark has the best work-life balance than that of all countries in the EU where the unemployed also benefit from 90% of their previous earnings for up to 104 weeks,
  • in Austria, employees are permitted to leave for home by 3 pm on Fridays while some organizations work from 8 am - 5 pm, hence giving the workers more flexibility,
  • the government of Finland introduced a 'baby box' for soon-to-be parents that doubles up as a baby bassinet packed with bodysuits, blankets, toys and other newborn essentials.

Listing out certain key factors and characteristics that exist in both these places, the comparison majorly lies not just with each other but also with the basic characteristics of a positive/healthy work structure in organizations listed at the beginning of this study. It is so commonly believed that increased working hours as compared to flexibility in the working hours' witnesses lesser per capita productivity.

Contrary to popular belief, dynamic and flexible work cultures have more than just a positive impact on employee behavior, it also has the potential to significantly impact the economy in a much more positive way. According to an August 2019 report generated by the Centre for Economics and Business Research (Cebr), commissioned by Citrix, the cumulative potential US economic gains from a flexible working culture could accrue to approximately $2.36 trillion (in Gross Value Added) per annum. The study further identifies the tangible benefits of a more widespread flexible working culture:

• reduction in commuting costs for working individuals,
• increase in personal leisure time promoting healthier work-life balance,
• the approximate capacity of saving close to $44.8 billion on commuting spent on tickets or gas,
• close to 65% of part-time working respondents would have the inclination to invest more in working hours provided the option of flexible working hours and location which could potentially create $72.3 billion in terms of extra GVA across the US economy,
• an estimated 10.2% boost to US GDP through engaging the unemployed and economically inactive respondents who can benefit from flexible working environments as compared to a potential boost of only 4.7% in the UK, 7.1% in France and 4.6% in Sweden.

In conclusion, as technology is developing and becoming ever so accessible across most parts of the globe, organizations and companies should start focusing on the daily practices and uses of the same to enhance work cultures and flexibility across the board. The US Government also has a major role to play in creating a favorable and beneficial environment, not only for the employees but also for the employers, through investments in infrastructure and policy developments.