Four-Day WorkWeek
Four-Day WorkWeek
You have probably heard of the four-day workweek. From company trials in Australia to the UK and companies as big as Microsoft, Chik-Fil-A, and Kickstarter all trying some version of the program and a bill being proposed in Congress, the four-day work week is gaining a lot of buzz. But how can companies know it's a good fit for their goals and their staff?
Here’s our breakdown.
For starters, adjusting work hours is nothing new. Henry Ford reduced factory worker days from six to five in the 1890s and as recent as the 1970’s the rise in technology and efficiency gave some the idea that we were leaning towards a leisure class that has more free time than worktime. While that never happened, the four-day work week comes from a long history of adjusting working hours to provide a balance between employee work-life balance and company success, and early trials suggest there are some major perks.
The most prominent four-day workweek experiments have resulted in higher employeesatisfaction, increased retention, improved productivity, raised morale, and improved efficiency.As employees simultaneously have more time to dedicate to their hobbies, recharge, and takecare of loved ones, they can perform at a higher level more consistently throughout the weekwhile spending less time in the office.
However, like any shift in work style, the four-day workweek has some shortcomings. Forstarters, a good portion of the companies that have successfully implemented the schedule wassalary-based and larger corporations and it may be challenging to implement a 4-day systemwith hourly workers or a smaller staff. There are also industry constraints, as fields such asmedical and social work need people to be available more than even the standard 40-hourweek, anddepending on the KPIs, not every company can financially manage being open fewerdays as well.
Time will tell how effective the four-day workweek will truly be for companies, employers, and employees, and the best thing about its rising popularity is that teams can come together and have critical conversations about how to be more productive while giving time to manage everyday life.
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