One of the biggest and most significant work studies is currently taking place, involving over 3,000 employees in UK companies on a trial run of a four-day work week. A survey found 72% of employees strongly favour a four-day work week. When asked, employees say they are confident in their ability to carry out their work even with one less work day. 60% believe they are able to complete five days worth of work in just four, and the consensus is to work smarter, rather than harder. Below, we’ll explore the nuances of a four-day workweek and how it may revolutionise the UK workforce in the future:
A solution to burnout
Exacerbated by the unprecedented conditions brought about by the pandemic, employees in the UK and worldwide have had to work in abnormal situations over the past few years. Many have reported mental health struggles due to stress at work, while others experience symptoms of burnout. As such, some experts propose a four-day workweek as a solution for burnout, especially after large-scale pilot projects across the globe saw that productivity, customer service, and wellbeing improve dramatically.
Some pilot projects, such as the one in Iceland, led to real change, seeing more than 80% of Icelandic workers today enjoying the shortened workweek. In the UK, the Landmark Hotel in London became the first major hotel to institute a reduced workweek to ease employee burnout and boost productivity. Recently, we also wrote about the Welsh Senedd’s debate regarding the four-day workweek pilot in Wales, calling on the Welsh government to establish the reduced workweek to see the benefits to Welsh workers, the economy, and the environment.
Efficiency over formality
Another interesting point of view regarding the shortening of the conventional five-day workweek to four is that studies have found that people around the world work a number of weekly hours that can be adjusted to a four-day workweek. Data on annual hours worked from the OECD found that Germany led the ranks at an average of 26.98 hours worked weekly, which makes up 3.3 days of eight-hour work shifts. The UK’s weekly rates are 29.94 hours, which makes up 3.74 days of eight-hour work shifts.
If workweeks can be adjusted according to hours worked in a week, then the proposed four-day workweek will fit just right. This would ensure employees spend less time working late — and risking experiencing burnout in the process — while getting the same amount of work done, if not more, due to the increased productivity and motivation from a three-day weekend.
Reframing work
More importantly, when the pandemic introduced the necessity for remote work, there was a collective realisation that remote-friendly jobs are better, with more than a quarter of remote employees saying they will quit or seek remote-friendly jobs if a full-time return to office became mandatory again.
Aside from a heightened sense of employee satisfaction, an important finding from the shift to remote work involves reframing work and productivity. Essentially we need to move away from the hours and numbers, taking an output-based approach instead. Rather than working 50 hours a week, focusing on specific tasks and projects that need to be done can help employees better manage themselves and their time. This is something that a four-day workweek can make possible.
