Four working days a week: the UK leads the way

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

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

We’re really encouraged by the results, which show the many ways companies have turned the four-day week from a dream into realpolitik, with multiple benefits.said David Frayn, a research associate at the University of Cambridge who helped lead the team responsible for interviewing the staff who took part in the trial. We think there’s a lot here that will motivate other companies and industries to try it out.

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

As expected, employees reported benefits: 71% said they felt less overwhelmed, 39% said they were less stressed, and 48% were more satisfied with their jobs than before the experience.

Among workers, 60% said it was easier to balance work and home responsibilities, while 73% reported a greater degree of life satisfaction. According to the results of the study, fatigue decreased, people slept more and their mental health improved.

Better economic performance

For companies that implemented shorter working hours — whether that meant fewer working days per week or longer hours during certain parts of the year and shorter hours the rest of the time to an average of 32 hours per week — turnover did not decrease, according to the findings.

Revenue increased by 1.4% during the trial for the 23 companies that provided adequate data – weighted by company size – while another 24 companies saw their revenue increase by 1.4%, increasing business by more than 34% compared to the same half of the previous year.

The probability of employee resignation decreased by 57% over the same period in the previous year, as did the number of sick leave days, which decreased by 65% ​​from the previous year.

Among companies, 92% said they would continue with the four-day-a-week system, and 30% said it was a permanent change.

” Not only do these results show that the UK pilot program has been a resounding success, but it is encouraging that they largely mirror the results of our previous trials in Ireland and the US, further strengthening the case four days a week. »

There are, of course, sectors that cannot create shorter working hours because they need workers around the clock, such as hospitals and emergency workers. In recent months, these workers and many others in the UK have gone on strike to demand better working conditions and wages commensurate with the rising cost of living.