Switzerland has recently joined the growing trend of questioning the traditional five-day workweek, with many companies opting for a four-day week with the same salary to motivate their staff. In contrast, Greece has allowed workers to choose to work six days a week instead of five in an effort to counteract a shortage of skilled workers. While no legal adjustment was necessary for the return of general Saturday work in Switzerland, there is nothing in the law that prohibits working on the sixth day of the week.
The Swiss labor law defines workload in hours per week, with only Sunday work requiring a permit. However, many Swiss people prefer to have Saturdays off and value the two-day weekend. The acceptance of the five-day week in Switzerland was a slow process that originated in the American industrial sector in the early 20th century. Henry Ford, an important pioneer of the five-day week, made Saturday a day off for his factory workers in 1926, emphasizing that less working time could boost the economy by providing more leisure time for additional consumer spending.
The turning point came in the late 1950s when trade unions and employers’ associations agreed to collective agreements. Since then, the five-day week has become widely accepted in Switzerland, leading to more flexible working time models and an increase in part-time work in the 21st century. While
