The Estonian language is full of work-related sayings that reflect attitudes from different eras. Historian Andres Adamson explained that well-known phrases like "work turned an ape into a man" (töö tegi ahvist inimese) and "he who does not work, does not eat" (kes ei tööta, see ei söö) are rooted in the Soviet period and reflect a mindset shaped by forced labor. "At the same time, 'work praises the doer' (töö kiidab tegijat) is the opposite — an expression that values quality," he noted on Vikerraadio's "Teise mätta otsast" talk show.

According to Adamson, most folklore, including laments and proverbs, was recorded from wage workers, such as serfs and manor servants. This explains the many sayings that are critical of work. "For example, 'work never ends' (töö ei lõppe kunagi) or the well-known 'let the manor's rope drag along' (mõisa köis las lohiseb) or 'work is a fool's pastime' (töö on lolli ajaviide) and *'work does not feed' (töö ei toida) — all of these are Estonian proverbs," the historian listed. Sayings that stress the importance of reward are also common, such as 'an empty sack will not stand upright' (tühi kott püsti ei seisa) and 'as the food, so the trot' (kuda söök, nõnda sörk).

Three types of attitudes

Broadly speaking, people have always fallen into three groups, Adamson said: those for whom work is self-fulfillment, those who work simply to make a living and those who try to avoid work altogether. "The balance between these groups determines quite a lot in society," he noted.

Economist Maaja Vadi agreed, saying the same division applies in Estonia today. A recent study led by Krista Jaakson found that nearly 69 percent of Estonians work in order to live. "Those who live to work made up around 16 percent and the rest fell into the third category," Vadi explained. Compared with other countries, Estonia stood out. Among Romanian students, for instance, the picture was reversed and in the United States more respondents lived to work. Estonia was also the only country where the respondents were working people rather than students.

According to Vadi, work culture plays a key role in the economy because it directly affects national income. She pointed to the debate over building a nuclear power plant as an example: "We like to say we'll build one here, […] but I would ask whether we've analyzed if our work culture is at the level needed to run such a plant."

She said three main factors shape work culture: the external environment, meaning historical and cultural conditions, individuals' perceptions and sense of role and organizational leadership practices. The last factor, she noted, became most important in the early 20th century. "Work performance depends on an individual's motivation times an individual's abilities, plus the organization's support," Vadi summarized.

Adamson agreed that good leadership has always improved productivity. He noted that after Estonia was conquered in the 13th century, the land as a whole began to grow wealthier, suggesting better work organization. "When society as a whole starts to get richer, that can only come from improved work arrangements," he said. He also pointed out that Estonian peasants themselves had slaves — known as thralls — working on larger farms up until the 15th century. "The last document mentioning thralls in Estonia dates to 1455," he added.

Vadi stressed that the link between work organization and prosperity holds true today. Global studies show that about one-third of productivity is tied to management quality. "Worldwide, companies with higher management quality also have better qualified employees," she added, emphasizing that this relationship has held steady throughout history.

From the seasons to the eight-hour workweek

The five-day workweek and the eight-hour workday, now taken for granted, are relatively new in historical terms. "Before the coronavirus pandemic, the five-day week or a set number of working hours was a fairly traditional way for us to think about work," said Maaja Vadi. At the same time, she noted, there are many countries where both the days and hours worked are longer. "Sometimes we need to look back at the historical moment when these decisions were made and ask whether perhaps we should start seeing things differently now," she reflected.

For centuries, Estonians lived as a peasant people in rhythm with the seasons. Working time was unregulated and depended on seasonal tasks, the weather and daylight. "The seasonality of work also meant there were stretches of the year when there was much less to do and no need to rush," Adamson explained. When autumn work ended, it was customary to celebrate and lavishly spend what had been gathered. Wealthier peasants influenced by the Moravian movement, or Herrnhutism, sought to break away from this tradition.

Serfdom, often associated with foreign conquest, in fact developed in Estonia only in the 17th century during Swedish rule, Adamson said. "Slavery and serfdom are different phenomena: slavery is far worse," the historian noted. Because of a mistranslation in Estonian, however, the impression is misleadingly given that serfdom (pärisorjus) was somehow even harsher than slavery. In reality, the rise of serfdom was linked to the growth of early capitalism in Western Europe, which made Estonia an important grain producer. Large-scale grain production in manors required a stable workforce, which was ensured by binding peasants to the land.

Estonia remained a class-based society until the end of the tsarist era, Adamson said. "For someone of peasant status, not working was simply not possible. That person would be considered a vagrant, subject to arrest and punishment," he explained. Regulated working hours initially applied mainly to factory laborers and office clerks. Although the Russian Provisional Government introduced the eight-hour workday in 1917, during World War I factory workers in Estonia still worked an average of 11.5 hours a day, six days a week.

One painful historical legacy is the gender pay gap. Adamson cited an example from 1875 in Kassari Parish, where a male farmhand's annual wage was more than 15 rubles, while a maidservant earned just seven and a half. "The gender pay gap, which we still complain about today — that it's so large in Estonia — is, in my view, one of the country's biggest problems in labor relations," Vadi commented.

She added that while the gap has narrowed, it remains significant. Adamson clarified that at the time, physical strength was a major factor in how work was valued. Since men typically performed heavier physical labor, that was reflected in their pay.

New generation looking for personal development

Compared with the past, today's world of work offers far more choices. "We've reached a time when work is much more diverse. As a result, many people's abilities are better applied and the ways to achieve self-realization are certainly richer," said Maaja Vadi. At the same time, she noted, this brings new challenges, such as how to measure performance in an increasingly complex environment.

One emerging trend is compressed working time, which is also being studied at the European Union level. "The principle is 100-80-100, meaning 100 percent pay, 80 percent working time and 100 percent productivity," Vadi explained. She added that some Estonian companies have experimented with a four-day workweek and found it successful, though one eventually returned to a five-day week. Still, this raises the question, she said, of what people do with the time that is freed up.

The labor market is also being shaped by the fourth industrial revolution — automation and artificial intelligence. "Unfortunately, this destroys many jobs, especially for young and less qualified workers," noted Andres Adamson. Vadi pointed out that studies show AI increases productivity most among lower-skilled workers, while in more complex tasks, it tends to benefit highly qualified employees.

The fundamental question, Vadi said, is how people relate to AI. She distinguished between two approaches: "There's the cyborg type and the centaur type. Cyborg means treating AI as some kind of being — you ask questions, you get answers. The centaur view is to treat it as a partner." According to her, AI also brings back basic issues of communication and identity in work groups.

Adamson likewise sees AI's advance as a major change, one that will affect, for example, the education system. "One of the first casualties will be teachers — the need for them will sharply decrease," he predicted. This requires different kinds of teachers and a different kind of school system, as shown by the experience of the kood/Jõhvi coding school, which has no traditional teachers at all. Vadi agreed that professions are changing and argued that curricula should bring back subjects like philosophy and logic, which are needed in the AI era.

Looking ahead, Vadi also highlighted generational differences. "A new generation is growing up that values not just performance in their work behavior, but balance between performance and personal development," she said. Among younger workers, sustainability and a more honest attitude toward their work are also key.

In conclusion, Vadi emphasized that while employees play an important role, the greatest responsibility still lies with organizational leaders. "Management culture is Estonia's great opportunity for development, but unfortunately it is often also a weak spot," she observed. Workers' understanding of their jobs and goals, she said, begins with how well and how fairly the entire process is managed. "When we sometimes speak of work in negative terms, that is to some extent still a shortcoming in management culture," Vadi concluded.

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