The worldÂ’s thickest book is about to be published here in Denmark. The book is 23,675 pages long, but its contents and publisher are as noteworthy as its length.
Unemployment insurance company “Min A-kasse” published the book, and in its voluminous pages you can read the entire legal framework around which the country’s unemployment insurance funds are administered.
The purpose of publishing the book is to encourage debate about the growing bureaucracy surrounding unemployment benefits, explained Simon Bauer, a spokesperson Min A-Kasse.
“Our goal is to show how large the bureaucracy has grown in this area,” he said.
“Bureaucracy can be difficult to understand, but it becomes more concrete when there are so many regulations that it takes the world’s largest book to publish them all.”
Half a century ago unemployment benefits legislation filled only 421 pages. That number grew to 17,000 in 2000. And since then another 7,000 have been added.
“The regulations have grown slowly but surely, even though politicians have said that they want to eliminate bureaucracy,” said Bauer. “Our hope is that the new government will do something to simplify the many regulations in this area.”
Bureaucracy is expensive, he explained, and the numerous regulations make the benefits system confusing for the unemployed.
Min A-kasse, which boasts 45,000 members, has for years attempted to raise awareness about the numerous regulations through its “Stop bureaucracy” campaign. The organisation expects the 23,675-page book to make the Guinness World Records book.
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