Greenland may explore a shorter working week as lawmakers consider whether moving from the current 40-hour standard to 35 or 37 hours could improve work-life balance without weakening public services or public finances.
The proposal, now moving through Inatsisartut, Greenland’s parliament, would require the government, Naalakkersuisut, to map the social, economic, labour-market and sectoral effects of reducing working hours. The results of the study are expected by the end of 2027.
The debate places Greenland within a wider Nordic discussion on working time, welfare capacity and labour shortages. Unlike Denmark, where a 37-hour week is standard in many sectors, Greenland and the Faroe Islands still stand out within the Danish Realm (Rigsfællesskabet) for maintaining a 40-hour working week.
A 35- or 37-hour week enters Greenland’s political agenda
The proposal was introduced by Karen Marie Kyed Frederiksen of Demokraatit. She argues that a shorter working week in Greenland could raise quality of life, improve job satisfaction and give workers more time with children and family.
Greenland’s government has signalled support for launching the study, and a majority in the parliament’s business committee has also backed the idea. The proposal does not immediately change working hours. Instead, it asks the authorities to assess what a reduction from 40 hours to either 37 or 35 hours would mean for the labour market, gender equality, public finances and different sectors of the economy.
The issue has gained new relevance after around 230 state civil servants in Greenland obtained Danish-style pay and employment conditions earlier this year. Under that agreement, they moved from a 40-hour week to a 37-hour week while aligning their terms with colleagues in Denmark.
Trade unions support fewer hours but warn against lower pay
Greenland’s largest trade union, SIK, is expected to enter negotiations with the state soon. Its chair, Jess G. Berthelsen, has said the union will also examine whether its members should move to a 37-hour week.
For unions, the central condition is that a reduction in working time should not result in lower wages. SIK has called for full wage compensation, meaning employees would work fewer hours without losing pay.
A similar position has been expressed by Elna Heilmann, chair of the teachers’ union IMAK. However, both union leaders have also raised doubts about whether Greenland’s economy can currently sustain such a reform. Heilmann has suggested that the study may ultimately remain a document “for the desk drawer” if the financial and labour-market conditions are not in place.
Labour shortages could make a shorter week harder to deliver
The main challenge is Greenland’s already tight labour market. A shorter working week with full wage compensation would require either higher productivity or more staff to maintain the same level of public services.
Torben M. Andersen, chair of Greenland’s Economic Council (Grønlands Økonomiske Råd) and professor of economics at Aarhus University, has warned that the reform could reduce public revenue while increasing costs for the self-government. If employees work fewer hours and the same services must be maintained, more workers would be needed.
That is difficult in a country where the shortage of qualified labour is already one of the most pressing structural problems. If new workers cannot be recruited, a shorter week could increase pressure on staff and worsen the working environment in some sectors, rather than improving it.
The debate therefore goes beyond work-life balance. It also concerns the capacity of Greenland’s welfare system, the sustainability of public finances and the ability to attract and retain skilled workers in remote communities.
Public finances add pressure to Greenland’s work-time debate
The timing is politically sensitive. Greenland’s economy is under pressure, with public finances affected by demographic change, a declining population and an ageing society. A recent analysis by Danmarks Nationalbank warned that Greenland’s operating and capital balance showed a deficit of up to DKK 400 million in 2025, equal to about €54 million.
Although measures have been introduced in the 2026 budget to restore balance between revenue and expenditure, long-term demographic trends remain a concern. A shorter working week could therefore be costly if it is introduced without productivity gains, new recruitment or changes in service delivery.
For Greenland, the issue is also connected to equality and family policy. Supporters see shorter hours as a way to improve everyday life, especially for families with children. Critics and sceptics argue that the reform must be tested against the country’s economic and labour-market constraints before any political commitment is made.
A wider Nordic debate with a Greenlandic reality
The Faroe Islands have also discussed reducing the 40-hour week, but the latest government line has become more cautious, saying only that it is open to negotiations with unions on shorter working time.
Greenland is now taking a more structured step by considering a formal impact assessment. That approach reflects the tension at the centre of many Nordic welfare debates: how to improve quality of life and working conditions while preserving public services in societies facing demographic pressure.
If the study confirms that shorter hours can be introduced without undermining services or public finances, it could open the way to a gradual reform of Greenland’s labour market. If it highlights high costs and recruitment risks, the proposal may remain a long-term ambition rather than an immediate policy change.
