More than 70 companies and over 3,300 employees have recently started the largest 4-day working week trial the UK has ever seen.
From a fish and chip shop to a tax specialist, from a software firm to a skincare provider, companies from around the country have now begun the historic trial being coordinated by 4 Day Week Global, a nonprofit group led by Andrew Barnes, who runs a New Zealand insurance company who first cut its own workweek back in 2018.
Over the next six months, companies will work with the researchers to assess the trial’s impact on both the productivity of the companies and the well-being of their employees.
Could this be the start of something big? Perhaps, and here’s everything you need to know about the trial.
What exactly is happening?
The 4-day week trial currently underway, which will run for six months, involves more than 70 companies and over 3,300 employees. It will use the 100:80:100 model – 100% of pay for 80% of the time, in exchange for a commitment to maintain 100% productivity. This will mean that all employees covered under the pilot scheme will see their hours drop by 20% without any change in pay.
The trial will closely monitor its participants, in terms of their own contentment and their company’s productivity, and by the end of the year, we should have a good idea of how successful it has been.
What other countries are taking part?
This is not only the largest trial ever in the UK, but it’s also the largest globally. Trials are also being held in the United States, Canada, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand, while Spain and Scotland will hold their own trials later this year.
What is the purpose of the trial?
For years now people have discussed the work/life balance and how best to achieve a good equilibrium, but we have seen precious few positive steps to address the problem of employee burnout and soaring stress levels.
A four-day work week has long been touted as a possible solution to problems at work but more often than not was seen as an idealistic notion that would never work. The Covid-19 pandemic opened the door to a new way of working along with a substantial reassessment of how we approach our working lives.
The 4-day working week trial aims to prove once and for all that it’s not necessarily about how much time you spend in the office, but rather the quality of the time spent.
Have there been other trials?
While this may be the UK’s largest trial of its kind, several other countries have already held their own experiments. The biggest of which was in Iceland where the nation trialled a 4-day working week between 2015 and 2019 with 2,500 participants taking part. This has led to almost 90% of the Icelandic population working with reduced hours because of the successful results.
Other Scandinavian countries, namely Sweden and Finland have also held successful trials, but both have yet to see the same kind of widespread implementation as in Iceland, a country with just 365,000 inhabitants.
In February 2022, Belgian employees won the right to perform a full workweek in four days instead of the usual five without loss of salary, while companies such as Microsoft in Japan, and Toyota in Sweden have also decided to voluntarily reduce the number of hours required of their employees.
What are the pros and cons?
As much as we’d like to think it, it would be naive to assume that a 4-day working week is a silver bullet that will solve all of our problems. But when we look at pros and cons, it’s important to look at both sides of the debate.
The potential benefits for employees are clear for all to see; more time away from the office, without any reduction in pay. Considering studies suggest we waste at least a couple of hours a day during an 8-hour shift, it would appear that it could be a win-win situation for everybody involved. With employees given more time off, they would be, in theory, happier, better rested and more productive when they are in the office.
On the flip side, there remain some unconvinced by a 4-day working week. Concerns are usually based on practicalities rather than arguing against the benefit of employees having more time at home. Some companies have stated that a 4-day working week could lead to scheduling conflicts, inadequate coverage at work, lower hours for those who want more and so on.
A new way of working?
It’s perfectly conceivable that both the pros and cons mentioned above will turn out to be true. As we said, this is not a magic solution to our constant battles with stress and anxiety, but it just might be a small change that can make a big difference.
Much of the opposition comes from an unwillingness to make major changes, especially when the global economy continues to see-saw, but changes are an inevitable part of societal evolution.
One hundred years ago we switched to a five-day working week, and maybe now is the right time to make another change.
