在以加班和過勞死聞名的日本，微軟今年8月在當地嘗試了一週4天工作制，最近該公司發佈了試驗階段性結果：雖然工作時間下降，但生產力卻提高了40%。真是別人家的公司呀~
Microsoft tried a 4-day workweek in Japan. Productivity jumped 40%
微軟日本嘗試一週四天工作制，生產力提高40%
A growing number of smaller companies are adopting a four-day workweek. Now the results of a recent trial at Microsoft (MSFT) suggest it could work even for the biggest businesses.
越來越多的小企業開始採用每週四天工作制。而微軟最近的嘗試結果表明這項制度對大企業來說也是可行的。
The company introduced a program this summer in Japan called the "Work Life Choice Challenge," which shut down its offices every Friday in August and gave all employees an extra day off each week.
微軟今年夏天在日本引入了一個名為“工作生活抉擇挑戰”的項目，規定該公司在8月份時每週五不用上班，給所有員工每週多一天的休息。
The results were promising: While the amount of time spent at work was cut dramatically, productivity — measured by sales per employee — went up by almost 40% compared to the same period the previous year, the company said in a statement last week.
根據該公司上週發佈的聲明來看，結果還是很令人滿意的：雖然每週工作時長明顯降低，但按人均銷售額計算的生產效率卻與去年同期相比增長了將近40%
In addition to reducing working hours, managers urged staff to cut down on the time they spent in meetings and responding to emails.
They suggested that meetings should last no longer than 30 minutes. Employees were also encouraged to cut down on meetings altogether by using an online messaging app (Microsoft's, of course).
除了減少工時，經理們還要求員工降低花在開會及回覆郵件上的時間。他們建議會議市場不得超過30分鐘。此外，還鼓勵員工使用即時通訊應用來代替會議（當然使用微軟自家的應用）。
The effects were widespread. More than 90% of Microsoft's 2,280 employees in Japan later said they were impacted by the new measures, according to the company.
這項決定的影響是廣泛的。根據公司透露，微軟日本的2280名員工中有超過90%的人認為他們受到了新決定的影響。
By shutting down earlier each week, the company was also able to save on other resources, such as electricity.
每週提前停止工作，該公司還能夠節約其它成本，例如電費。
The initiative is timely. Japan has long grappled with a grim — and in some cases, fatal — culture of overwork. The problem is so severe, the country has even coined a term for it: karoshi means death by overwork from stress-induced illnesses or severe depression.
這個倡議可以說是一場及時雨，因為日本一直以來都試圖與其殘酷甚至是致命的加班文化鬥爭。這個問題嚴重到該國甚至發明了一個新詞——過勞死，意思是因為加班壓力引起的疾病或抑鬱導致的死亡。
The issue attracted international attention in 2015, when an employee at Japanese advertising giant Dentsu died by suicide on Christmas Day. Tokyo officials later said that the staffer had worked excessive amounts of overtime.
2015年，日本廣告界巨頭Dentsu電通集團一名員工在聖誕節選擇自殺，也讓這個問題引起了國際關注。東京的官員之後宣稱這名員工生前曾有大量的加班記錄。
Two years later, a reporter at a Japanese broadcaster died after working punishing long hours. Her employer said she had clocked in 159 hours of overtime the month before her death.
兩年後，日本的一名播音員也在長時間精疲力竭的工作後死亡。她的僱主說她死前那個月加班了159個小時。
That has led businesses to start searching for solutions. Some companies have begun offering employees more flexibility, and the government has launched a campaign called "Premium Friday," which encourages workers to leave early every last Friday of the month.
這些事件讓商界開始尋找解決方案。一些公司開始給予員工更多自由度，政府也啟動了一項名為“超值星期五”的宣傳活動，鼓勵員工們在每個月的最後一個星期五提前下班。
Microsoft, for its part, says it will conduct another experiment in Japan later this year. It plans to ask employees to come up with new measures to improve work-life balance and efficiency, and will also ask other companies to join the initiative.
微軟則說他們今年會在日本啟動另一項試驗。該公司計劃要求員工提出改善工作生活平衡以及提高工作效率的措施，也建議其它公司一起加入這項行動來。
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