The 4 day working week is gaining traction in Europe after more results from pilot testings. Countries such as the UK and Iceland have shown that the 100-80-100 rule (100% productivity for 80% of the time and 100% of the pay) has resulted in much happier workers.
Overall, employees felt well rested, less stressed and found a better work-life balance. Crucially, many organisations in these 4 day working week tests did not see a direct negative impact on productivity and revenue.
We saw the very first results for this model back in August 2022, where respondents commented on this to be “life-changing”, as they had more time for their life and social commitments outside of work. Since then, the traction for this movement phased out in the news, especially as we saw more calls for returns to the office in the rise of hybrid work.
While these results indicate that the desire and momentum for this working model is back, it’s also clear that a 4 day working week relies on decreasing shift hours to reduce burnout. The results are more successful this time round, as employees weren’t trying to squeeze 40 hours of work into just four days.
Asda discontinued a trial for staff to work 44 hours over four days, for the same pay. Staff found the 11-hour shifts too demanding, particularly if they relied on public transport or had caregiving responsibilities.
In our new business era of technology advancements, it’s also more likely that jobs that can use AI to help make staff more productive will also be more likely to implement shorter working weeks for the same pay.
A new four-day week pilot project is due to launch in the UK in November. It will aim to incorporate a range of flexible working options, such as moveable start and finish times, compressed hours, and nine-day fortnights.