AMSTERDAM — Trying to figure out a Dutch work schedule is a little like solving a Sudoku puzzle: You bog down in numbers.

Take the example of Esther Hezemans, 36, and her 39-year-old husband, Edwin Stokvis, a business consultant. The two work four days a week for a total of 32 hours each — she as a human-resources manager at a publisher, he as a business consultant.

Both take one weekday off, but never the same day. That allows them to spend a total of three days each with their 17-month-old son, weekends included. On the three weekdays when both parents work, the boy goes to day care.