Write a 5-sentence comparison paragraph using the point-by-point method about the following two articles. Begin your paragraph with a topic sentence, then add 3 supporting sentences to compare 3 benefits for businesses/employers with 3 benefits for workers/employees. Finally, end your paragraph with a conclusion sentence.

Article No.1

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People who work fewer hours per week are not only happier, but also more productive at their jobs according to a large-scale pilot program in Iceland. Between 2015 and 2019, the Reykjavk City Council and Icelandic federal government teamed up with trade unions to test the pros and cons of a four-day workweek. About 2,500 workers more than one per cent of the country's workforce worked between 35 and 36 hours a week, as opposed to the standard 40, with no reduction in pay. "The results are hugely positive. Workers from all sorts of areas of the public sector are incredibly happy with their work-life balance, spending more time with their families, doing more kind of extracurricular activities things like cycling, taking up new hobbies, and so on," researcher Will Stronge told As It Happens guest host Duncan McCue. "It's been an overwhelming success, as you might imagine from the workers' perspective, but also one from the employers too."

LISTEN | The benefits of a four-day workweek:

Stronge is the co-director of the U.K. think-tank Autonomy, which compiled data on the trial alongside Iceland's Association for Sustainable Democracy. The participants came from a wide variety of workplaces, including offices, hospitals, preschools and social services. Those who usually work 9 to 5, Monday through Friday, had four-day workweeks. Others, who did shift work, saw their hours reduced in other ways. But across the board, the results were the same. In a joint report, Autonomy and the association found employees exhibited "greater well-being, improved work-life balance and a better co-operative spirit in the workplace all while maintaining existing standards of performance and productivity." "The most remarkable thing from my perspective, the thing which I think is the most maybe heart-warming, is the amount of time that people have for their family, the way they could reconnect with their families," Stronge said.

While it's not surprising that people are happier when they work less, Stronge said employers were happy too. In the best cases, he says managers reported increased productivity. At worst, productivity remained stable. What's more, the experiment had no effect on the employers' bottom line. Stronge says that's because employees were less likely to suffer from workplace stress, anxiety, depression and burnout. As a result, they worked harder and took fewer sick days. "They kind of had a greater energy on the job and actually enjoyed their work a bit more," he said. "Which sounds very rosy but that is what comes out of a lot of these trials, is that people feel actually more attached to the job. In a way, they feel rewarded by having more time." The Icelandic findings are on par with other similar experiments around the world. Microsoft Japan tried a four-day workweek in 2019 and reported a 40 per cent boost in productivity. A New Zealand company called Perpetual Guardian switched permanently to a four-day week in 2018 after its trials saw a 20 per cent increase in productivity. Municipal employees in Guysborough, N.S., ran a four-day workweek pilot in 2020 and found it to be such a positive experience, they voted in April to keep the policy in place. B.C. Premier John Horgan recently said a four-day workweek is not "off the table" in his province, as Canadians emerge from the pandemic.

"I think there is a bit of a sea change in terms of the conversation around working time, and we're very happy to be part of it," Stronge said. And it's something he knows first-hand, too. At Autonomy, employees work 32 hours a week, and he highly recommends it.

The Second Article:

(How the pandemic has some Ontario employers switching to a 4-day work week)

The concept of a four-day work week is gaining traction as the COVID-19 pandemic wears on, with some employers re-evaluating their priorities. That's been the case for Heather Payne, CEO and founder of Juno College, a vocational school in Toronto that teaches tech and web skills. For the decade that she's been running the company, Payne says her focus has been on growth. But over the summer, she says, she had an "epiphany." "I realized that's not what matters the most," she told CBC News.

Now, starting in the new year, her 45 employees will be gradually transitioning into working four days a week, starting with one week in January, two in February and so on. Staff won't be making up the time, and they won't get paid any less. Payne is just one of a handful of employers who have decided to make the change to boost productivity, prioritize workers' health and, in some cases, retain talent. The Ontario Liberal Party has also promised a four-day workweek pilot if elected this spring.

"It honestly seems like the right thing to do. It's something I want for my own life as well," said Payne. The 40-hour workweek was adopted in 1914 when Henry Ford scaled the work week down from 48 to 40 hours, correctly believing productivity would improve. Companies experimenting with a four-day workweek include Toronto-based recruitment firm The Leadership Agency, Tulip Inc., a software company in Kitchener, Ont., and a small municipality in Nova Scotia. Iceland's capital started a pilot as far back as 2015 that involved 2,500 people.

'A more relaxed atmosphere'

Some of those pilots inspired managers in Zorra township, about 30 minutes east of London, Ont., to test out a compressed work week as well, which began in September 2020. The township's 14 staff worked four days a week and an hour extra per day. The work is split into two shifts, with one group working Monday to Thursday and the other working Tuesday to Friday.

Human resources professor Margaret Yap at Ryerson University says a four-day work week will boost productivity. (Submitted by Margaret Yap)

The second phase of Zorra's pilot recently wrapped, and its chief administrative officer Don MacLeod has called the project a success, especially since it means extended opening hours. "There's something about it that makes people happier to come to work," said MacLeod. "Everybody seems to have embraced it." MacLeod said news of the pilot has also helped retain talent, and staff reported more interest from people wanting to work for the township.

Similarly, an Angus Reid poll from 2020 suggested many Canadians support the idea. Fifty-three per cent of people polled said a shortened week would be a good idea. That's up from 47 per cent in 2018.

Benefits to productivity, but not everyone's on board

Many of the workplaces that have tested the four-day model have reported benefits to both employee and employer. That doesn't come as a surprise to Margaret Yap, an associate professor in the department of HR management and organization behaviour at Ryerson University. "It will increase productivity," she said. "Employees are going to think employers are taking care of them." The trials in Iceland, which took place over four years, found productivity remained the same or improved in the majority of workplaces. A similar pilot in Guysborough, a community in Nova Scotia, which Zorra's experiment was modelled after, found employees experienced a boost in morale, too.

• Could a four-day work week benefit municipalities? French River thinks so

Yap says the four-day model requires commitment from an employer to set an example so staff aren't reaching for their phones or turning on their computers on that extra day off. She also said it's easier for smaller workplaces to make the transition. But not every employee is a fan of the new work week, says Payne. While her company has received an increase in job applications since announcing the change, some staff have decided to leave in search of other opportunities. "It's a different strategy for the company, a lower growth strategy," she said. "I can't fault anyone for [leaving because of] that."