Four-day working week: UK leads the way

Among the benefits noted: Most employees were less stressed, less burned out and had a better work-life balance.

According to results published this week, companies indicated that their turnover between June and December 2022 was stable and increased compared to the same six months of the previous year.

We are truly encouraged by the results, which show the many ways companies have transformed the four-day week from a dream to a realistic policy, with many benefits.David Frayne, a research associate at the University of Cambridge, helped lead the team responsible for conducting interviews with staff who participated in the investigation. We think there’s a lot here that inspires other companies and industry to try.

The university team worked with several researchers from other institutions to see how companies and their 2,900 employees in industries ranging from marketing to finance would respond to the reduction in hours.

As expected, employees reported benefits: 71% reported feeling less burned out, 39% less stressed, and 48% more satisfied with their jobs than before the test.

Among workers, 60% said it was easier to balance work and home responsibilities, and 73% reported higher life satisfaction. According to study results, fatigue is reduced, people sleep more and their mental health improves.

Better economic performance

For companies that implemented shorter working hours—that is, one less workday per week or longer hours in certain parts of the year and shorter hours to achieve an average 32-hour week—revenues did not decline. For results.

Revenues increased by 1.4% during the test for the 23 companies that provided sufficient data – based on company size – and 24 companies increased their revenue by 1.4%. Business has grown by 34% compared to the same half of the previous year.

The likelihood of employees leaving is down 57% from the same period a year ago, and the number of sick days is down 65% from the previous year.

Among organizations, 92% said they would continue to implement the four-day week, and 30% said it was a permanent change.

” It is encouraging that these results not only show that the UK pilot program has been a huge success, but also replicate the results of our previous trials in Ireland and the US, further strengthening the case for the four-day week. »

There are fields where shorter hours cannot be established because they require workers around the clock, such as hospitals and emergency personnel. In recent months, these workers and many others have gone on strike in the UK, demanding better working conditions and higher living wages.