Turkey Meets Four-Day Work Week With Aksa’s Landmark Decision
The company is keeping salaries unchanged and not adding staff.
Aksa is a rare example in Turkey, but companies have run trials across the globe in recent years.
Photographer: Jason Alden/BloombergA year after a Turkish acrylic fiber producer initiated a trial of a four-day work week for 200 white-collar workers, the company became the nation's first to adapt the change for good — without altering employees’ salaries or benefits.
Aksa Akrilik Kimya Sanayii AS tested the shorter work week in an effort to boost operational efficiency and promote work-life balance. Located in Yalova, just outside of Turkey’s commercial hub of Istanbul, the company has a workforce of 1,200 people, including blue-collar workers. Laborers, who are compensated on an hourly basis and receive overtime pay, aren’t included in shorter work week.