Happiness at work

Is work oppressive? As illustrated by the recent wave of suicides in major companies, there is a profound malaise. Constant urgency, excessive workloads, lack of training, total disarray in company organization, management by terror, this scourge is continually leaving new victims. In the USA, 75-90% of workers consult their doctors about work-related stress (source: American Institute of Stress). Nowadays, this is a major problem for society. But what if the solution lies in the structure of the company itself?

A handful of companies around the world are trying to invent new organizational models and create a new concept of work: doing away with the pyramid system, encouraging egalitarian practices, scrapping controls and bosses, sharing information, and so on.

Shot in nine different companies in various countries around the world (India, USA, France, Belgium, Finland), this filmed investigation will reveal some innovative solutions that allow trust, freedom and creativity to be rebuilt in the working environment. The documentary will recall images of Chaplin’s “Modern Times”, but will also have a very human side, with intimate portraits of workers, managers and thinkers who want to change their companies for the better. We hope their stories will inspire us to create a happier working life.