Lasse Jensen, director of Leif Hansen Transport, says he hopes the 4-day working week will increase job satisfaction and make the driving profession more attractive. The new arrangements mean drivers can take a midweek day off every week, although they must still work 37 hours per week.
“If you have 10-12 hours everyday 5 days a week, you can’t do anything. It’s nice, I think, for many of those people when I say they can have one day off a week, then we can fix all that,” says Arne Jensen, who also works for the company.
Arne Jensen, who recently spoke to Tv2 Ostjylland reporters about his company’s new working arrangements, believes the extra day is required because truckers can never say, “I’m done at 3 pm”.
Ole Thorup, a representative of Denmark’s 3F trade union, says proposals like Jensen’s are long overdue:
It is an initiative that has been needed in the industry for many years, but it is only now that the sector can see that it is becoming necessary. We have a lot of young and older people who need some stability in their everyday lives.