Four-day work week: HR bluff or the most attractive business model of the future?
2026.03.13.
Is Friday the new Saturday? More and more business leaders are asking the question: does the four-day work week really work, or is it just a catchy startup utopia?
Perhaps your company has already considered that efficiency should not necessarily be measured by the number of hours spent in the office. Let`s take a look at how the big players are doing it and what specific opportunities the Hungarian Labor Code (Mt.) offers for its introduction.
International overview: The two major trends
The 4-day work week is not a single fixed template. In Europe, two models with completely different logics are gaining ground, and it really matters which one you choose:
1. The British model: The 100-80-100 rule (Shorter working hours) This model is the largest (and most successful) test project in the world to date. The formula is simple: 100% pay in exchange for 80% of working hours, provided that performance remains at 100%.
- What is the essence of this? There is an actual reduction in working hours (typically to 32 hours per week). Companies are betting that employees will be more focused. No more two-hour coffee meetings, no more endless internet surfing. According to Parkinson's Law, work fills the time available—if you only have four days to do it, you will do it in four days.
- Result: 92% of the companies participating in the British experiment continued with the system after the test because their revenues did not decrease, while staff turnover and burnout fell dramatically.
2. The Belgian model: The compressed workweek (same amount of work, fewer days) In Belgium, the 4-day week was enshrined in law in 2022, but with a major twist: working hours were not reduced!
- What is the essence of this? The 40 hours per week are condensed into 4 10-hour working days. Here, the employee works 100% of the time for 100% of the pay. Under Belgian law, the employee can request this schedule, and the employer must have a valid reason for refusing it.
- Pros and cons: A huge advantage is the guaranteed 3-day weekend, but working 10 hours a day can be very physically and mentally exhausting, especially in intellectual jobs.
⚖️ Would you introduce it at home? The possibilities under Hungarian labor law (Mt.)
If you were to try this as a Hungarian company, the phrase "we're not coming in from Monday to Friday" would be a hotbed for labor fines. The Hungarian Labor Code (Mt.) is more flexible than you might think, but you have to be smart about the paperwork. There are three main legal routes:
1. The "Belgian route" at home: Working time framework and uneven working time distribution If you want to keep the 40-hour week but have it worked over only 4 days, the general work schedule (8 hours from Monday to Friday) is not suitable.
- The legal solution: You must introduce a working time framework (Mt. 93. §). This allows for uneven working hours (Mt. 97. §). Thus, it is completely legal for an employee to work 10 hours a day from Monday to Thursday and 0 hours on Friday (day off).
- What to watch out for: With 10-hour working days, you have to be very strict about mandatory rest periods! At least 11 consecutive hours of daily rest must be provided between two working days, and granting weekly rest days (usually Saturday and Sunday) can also be trickier with individual schedules.
2. The "British way" at home: Shorter total daily working hours This is the real dream of employees, the classic 32-hour week.
- The legal solution: Although the legal full-time working day is 8 hours, Section 92(5) of the Labor Code states that the parties (the company and the employee) may agree that the full-time working day should be shorter.
- What does this mean in practice? The employment contract must be amended. You specify that the employee's full-time working hours will henceforth be 6.4 hours (or 4 days x 8 hours per week), but you also agree that their base salary will not be reduced. Important: legally, this is not part-time work, but a reduced full-time position.
3. The "fake four-day" model: Part-time work Just for the sake of completeness: of course, it is also an option for the employee to work 32 hours per week on a part-time basis (Section 88 of the Labor Code). This is the simplest legal form if someone only wants to work 4 days, but it usually comes with a 20% reduction in base salary, so it is not the classic "4-day work week" concept that is currently conquering the market.
The bottom line for company managers: The 4-day work week can be a huge competitive advantage in recruitment, but legally it is not a "one-size-fits-all" solution. Employment contracts, internal regulations (working time framework), and attendance records require meticulous planning.
