“In our lifetime, a four-day work week will become the norm,” predicts a researcher from the world’s biggest study.
Dr Daiga Kamarāde, a researcher at the University of Salford, who worked on the world’s largest four-day work week trial, predicts that within our lifetime a four-day work week will be commonplace for most people.
The eye-opening study, conducted by Autonomy, observed burnout was down by 71%, sick days decreased by two-thirds the number of staff leaving reduced, and on top of all that company revenue increased by 1.4% on average, and up by 35% from the pandemic years.
The ground-breaking report aimed to study the effects a reduced working week would have on the lives of employees and the output of businesses, with 61 companies and close to 3,000 workers across a wide range of different industries participating in the six-month trial.
“A four-day work week doesn’t only benefit employees but employers as well,” said Dr Kamarāde. “We expected 20, but had 61 organisations.”
Less time at work also meant worker support services had greater flexibility, and employees were more comfortable working late hours to support a customer’s schedule. “One day off was a substantial motivator,” said Dr Kamarāde.
On top of the benefits for existing staff, companies are given an edge in attracting higher-profile candidates, with Jennifer-Lecomber Peace from Adzooma saying: “Our time to hire was literally halved.”
How does a four-day work week work?
Adopting a four-day week wasn’t as simple as coming in a day less, but also being more efficient with the time you’re there. “It was challenging for some to introduce,” said Dr Kamarāde.
“Often times the employees themselves were the ones who came up with how to be more efficient.”
Companies and employees have to plan on how they would save time, like cutting out the chit-chat from meetings or upgrading to new equipment and software which doesn’t need as many people on hand to use.
“We had a lot of conversations about what productivity is rather than just busy work,” said Peace from Adzooma.
“These are conversations every company should have.”
Problems with the four-day work week?
Though, as the idea of a four-day work week continues to gain momentum around the world, not all are convinced or ready to adopt it yet.
Critics of the scheme point out there is not enough evidence yet to make any radical changes, and in this phase, the positive effects and momentum may be short-lived.
Elon Musk, whose employees are expected to work upwards of 70 hours per week, has said: “There are easier places to work, but no one has ever changed the world for 40 hours a week.”
Is 100% pay for 80% of the time fair for an employer, or asking an employee to maintain the same productivity during this shortened working week?
Some businesses found it difficult to introduce the shorter week, and it took a lot of pre-planning to get to a stage where they could attempt it.
There are a lot of sceptics or those hesitating in order to see more results, however, sceptical employers may be “forced to adopt it to remain competitive,” said Dr Kamarāde.
Most agree further research is needed to examine the wider range of effects this huge change in work schedule could have, and we won’t have to wait long.
“More trials are being planned all over the world,” said Dr Kamarāde, and trials are ongoing in countries like Australia, Canada, America, and Ireland.
What does the future hold for a four-day work week?
Back in the UK, Peter Dowd MP introduced an amendment to the Working Time Regulations bill proposing to reduce the working week from 48 hours to 32.
He said: “A five-day work week was introduced 100 years ago, and since then we’ve got minimum wage, equal pay for women. They brought benefits to society. This is one of the ways forward.
“The retirement age is increasing. They’re being asked to work longer years, this is just asking to work less hours.”
Jennifer-Lecomber Peace from Adzooma used the extra time off to join the board of a Charity.
She said: “You have so much more availability to give back.”
There are also plans for further study in the UK over a longer period. “We want to examine what effect it could have in the community.”
With more time off, researchers wonder if more will get involved with volunteering, politics, and even potential environmental effects.
If people commute one day less, there is “less air pollution” and “fewer traffic jams”.
“In our lifetime a four-day work week will become the norm,” said Dr Kamarāde.
“Businesses who don’t consider it will be ignoring an important innovation.”
You can view the results of the study online here: https://autonomy.work/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/The-results-are-in-The-UKs-four-day-week-pilot.pdf
Photo: Nadine Granville/ Unsplash
