Fika, 4-Week Off, Wellness Pay, 0 Overtime: Sweden’s Work Culture

Sweden, a country in Europe, has an amazing and healthy work culture. Sweden offers Fika, four-week holidays, wellness allowance, and zero overtime to employees. Several employers offer their employees “wellness allowance” up to £372 tax-free a year to spend on pre-approved wellbeing-based activities, which includes massage, mood boosting hobbies, gym, yoga and fun activities. 

The wellness allowance was first introduced in 1988. For years, Swedish employers have stuck with the wellness allowance in order to help employees. 

Maja Wessel, acting CEO of Region Stockholm’s Patient Advisory Committee (Patientnämnden) of the wellness allowance, has praised Sweden’s work culture. 

Sweden’s work-life balance

Weekly friskvårdstimme or “wellness hour”

Employees in Sweden are offered weekly friskvårdstimme or “wellness hour” to look after their wellbeing during paid working hours. They take 60 minutes to have fun. Employees can spend one work hour each week on wellness activities.

Fika

Fika (derived from the Swedish word for coffee, kaffe) break is popular among employees in Sweden. It is one of Sweden’s most enviable workplace practices. Fika break involves stepping away from your desk to grab a cup of coffee with colleagues. During Fika break, employees do not talk about work, they talk about other things. 

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Zero overtime

No employees work overtime in Sweden. If they work a little longer today, they can work shorter tomorrow. The most important thing for employers in Sweden is the completion of work. They do not bother about employees’ work timings. 

Four-week holidays

Employees in Sweden also get holiday allowances. The minimum annual leave for full-time employees is 25 days a year. They also get an extra 9 public holidays. Employees also have the legal right to take holiday four weeks in a row. 

Holiday bonus

Employees in Sweden receive holiday bonuses. They receive an additional 12 per cent of their gross salary and 0.43 per cent of their monthly salary every time they take annual leave. Employees enjoy their holidays with an extra holiday bonus.

Wellness allowance

Employees receive wellness allowance to spend on wellness activities. When they have fun and less stress, they work effectively in the workplace. Swedish workplace culture helps workers to achieve work-life balance.

What do you think about Sweden’s work culture? Share your answer in the comment section below.