What is it about the Scandinavia and the Low Countries when it comes to league tables?
There's barely a survey published on this and that which hasn't got one or other of them coming out on top - whether it's education results or levels of happiness.
The latest gong goes to the Netherlands who have been found to have more people working part-time — by choice — than in almost any other country. Especially women. In fact, 75 percent of Dutch working women work part-time.
It’s easy to see why mothers — actually, any workers — might choose part-time hours.
For example, Maggie Wissink Ook Geerdink - a senior policy advisor for the Dutch government has a big job but works only three days a week. That leaves her two days to volunteer at her children’s school, visit museums and have lunch dates with friends.
The appeal of having a fulfilling career and time for fun is part of the reason the Netherlands has the highest rate of part-time work in the developed world. Another explanation for the popularity of part-time work there is a law passed in 2000 that allows most employees to reduce their hours without repercussion.
The policy was intended to entice women with kids into the work force. And it has done just that. As Lieselotte Blommaert, a researcher at Utrecht University explains, “Before the part-time provisions were around, women just stopped working when they got married.”
With the rise of job sharing only set to give more workers the ability to go flexi, the future's bright if you are wearing Orange!
