This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies. Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: Doing more with less has become standard operating procedure for many in the current economic climate. And for some in the wake of France's 1998 workweek reduction, it was in response to a reform that's still being debated today.
The reform, enacted during socialist Prime Minister Lionel Jospin's term as head of the government, shortened the statutory workweek from 39 to 35 hours, without a reduction in individuals' pay. In return, firms adopting the reduced hours could claim employer payroll tax cuts of up to 11%. The policy was phased in by firm size: Firms with more than 20 employees had to implement the reduction by January 2000, while smaller firms had until January 2002.
Analysis by a research team that included Elio Nimier-David, assistant professor of economics in the ILR School, found that while the reform package left employment unchanged generally, there were several large, offsetting effects. Among them: Employment among managers and professionals increased due to work sharing, while lower-skilled workers saw a significant decrease in employment. Nimier-David is a co-author of "The Effects of a Shorter Workweek on Employment, Output, and Productivity," a working paper published Oct. 15 by the National Bureau of Economic Research.
Other co-authors are Pauline Carry, assistant professor of economics at Princeton University; Claire Montialoux, assistant professor of economics at Sciences-Po Paris; Alexandra Roulet, associate professor of economics at INSEAD; and Nina Roussille, assistant professor of economics at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The research team spent nearly five years analyzing this government mandate, which is still the subject of debate in a politically polarized France as the 2027 national elections loom. Nimier-David said it's typically hard to obtain causal evidence because, among other reasons, the mandates are usually at the national level, so there's no way to compare those who are affected by the mandate and those who aren't.
But the government in France rolled out the reduction in two stages, and a rich trove of administrative and survey data made it easier to parse out just how the reduction impacted workers, firms and the economy. The central question the team sought to answer: Did the 10% reduction in hours lead to more workers in the workforce? Their answer: That depends.
At the upper levels—management and skilled labor—the reform resulted in an increase in employment as planned. Weekly hours fell while pay remained the same. Reduced hours were achieved in multiple ways, including extended vacations.
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