{"id":1026,"date":"2014-01-09T22:53:58","date_gmt":"2014-01-09T22:53:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/danish\/?p=1026"},"modified":"2014-01-10T00:20:45","modified_gmt":"2014-01-10T00:20:45","slug":"the-danish-dream-of-working-less","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/danish\/2014\/01\/09\/the-danish-dream-of-working-less\/","title":{"rendered":"The Danish Dream of Working Less"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"This<\/a>

This man, known as Dovne Robert (Lazy Robert), has become a minor celebrity in Denmark for his negative attitudes towards working. There even was an interview with him in the NYTimes.<\/p><\/div>\n

You take the blue pill \u2013 you get your dr\u00f8mmejob<\/strong> (job-of-your-dreams), with long, interesting, busy days and en fed l\u00f8n<\/strong> (a fat salary). You take the red pill \u2013 you get a deltidsjob<\/strong> (part-time job) with short days and a lot of fritid<\/strong> (leisure time) \u2013 but considerably less penge<\/strong> (money).<\/p>\n

I hope you forgive me paraphrasing The Matrix! The point I\u2019m trying to make is \u2026 that you can probably not imagine how many Danes would\u2019ve taken the red pill!<\/p>\n

According to a fresh survey by the Danish statistical organization Yougov and the paper Metroxpress, every second Dane (49 % of the population) thinks that \u201dmy leisure time\u201d matters more than \u201dmy job and career\u201d. Only 19 % of the people in Denmark think it is more important at g\u00f8re karriere<\/strong> (to make a career).<\/p>\n

\u201dAre they nuts?\u201d I just hear the reactions from typical arbejdsnarkomaner<\/strong> (workaholics, literally \u201djob junkies\u201d) in career-minded countries like Mexico, the US and China. How could \u201dleisure time\u201d ever matter more than the \u201djob and career\u201d needed to make one\u2019s dreams come true?<\/p>\n

Well, for one thing, the \u201dDanish dream\u201d is quite different from den amerikanske dr\u00f8m<\/strong> (The American Dream). Sure, there are Danes in Hollywood and even a Danish astronaut or two, and Danes too are fond of their iPads & clothes & stuff\u2026 But still, the ideal for many people here remains at have det hyggeligt<\/strong> \u2013 to be in the warm state of \u201dcozy\u201d togetherness and safety and comfort known as hygge<\/strong><\/a>. To lots of Danes, that\u2019s more important than being famous or driving a fancy car. Hygge<\/strong> doesn\u2019t mean that Danes avoid luxury \u2013 far from it. Yet it sometimes means that people here prioritize a bit differently. The Danish response to the reaction I imagined above might be: \u201dWhat\u2019s the point of working all day to buy that big shiny villa, if you haven\u2019t got the time to light a candle and share a good bottle of Friday evening wine with your friends?\u201d<\/p>\n

Secondly, and most importantly, Denmark is a relatively wealthy velf\u00e6rdsstat<\/strong> (Welfare State). You don\u2019t have to work so much in order to survive. The worst paid jobs \u2013 like students\u2019 jobs \u2013 typically yield about 100 Kroner an hour (18 US dollars) \u2013 and that\u2019s about as low as it gets. A bread costs about 20 Kroner. People who don\u2019t have a family can work like two days a week and still pay for a room, food, clothes, a cinema ticket and a couple of beers\u2026<\/p>\n

Losing your job is not a catastrophe in Denmark. Most working Danes are members of an a-kasse<\/strong> or \u201dunemployment fund\u201d. You pay a certain amount each year, and in case you lose your job, the other a-kasse<\/strong> members ensure that you get dagpenge<\/strong> (\u201dday money\u201d) for some time (a couple of years, at the most). If you get sick and can\u2019t work, or if you lose your a-kasse<\/strong> benefits, you\u2019re guaranteed to get kontanthj\u00e6lp<\/strong> (\u201dcash help\u201d), a kind of monthly support from the state.<\/p>\n

According to DR (Danish television), the support for jobless people is so good that 17.700 Danes would actually increase<\/em> their incomes by quitting their jobs and registering themselves as unemployed! I guess that only the hygge<\/strong> of their arbejdsplads<\/strong> (workplace) keeps them there\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\"\"

You take the blue pill \u2013 you get your dr\u00f8mmejob (job-of-your-dreams), with long, interesting, busy days and en fed l\u00f8n (a fat salary). You take the red pill \u2013 you get a deltidsjob (part-time job) with short days and a lot of fritid (leisure time) \u2013 but considerably less penge (money). I hope you forgive…<\/p>\n

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