Do you think there is a good argument for moving to a 4 day week?
What do you think we need to put in place to make it work?
https://www.hrreview.co.uk/hr-news/strategy-news/is-a-four-day-work-week-viable-in-2021/134573
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I got my hair cut yesterday (let's take a moment to celebrate that!) and I was actually speaking to my hairdresser about this because her husband works for OpenReach where the engineers all work a four day week officially, but they just take overtime and end up working five days.... I think the five day week is so ingrained and expected that it's going to be difficult to change - unless everyone does it!
~Lynne
Firstly, congratulations on the hair cut Lynne Watson it's a great feeling isn't it? 😄
I think you have hit the nail on the head - a 5 day week is definitely ingrained in the UK workforce...and because we have always done it that way, it will be difficult to change. We need some high profile, trailblazer companies who are willing to lead the charge and make this change then others will follow 🙂
When I worked in corporate, I worked a 8.5 day working fortnight (I know, sounds confusing 😀)
In essence I worked Monday - Thursday each week and then alternated with working a Friday morning one week and then having all day Friday off the next. Obviously to do this meant my Mon - Thurs were longer working days but this was mitigated a bit by the alternate Friday morning hours.
I think this was a good compromise as it meant you were not unavailable every Friday - a bit of fleixibily on both sides if something came up on my full day off.
Your 8.5 day fortnight Susan Caldwell sounds like the 9-day fortnight that I previously worked in both the private and third sector. It was great for flexibility, engagement and motivation and definitely made me more productive and genuinely happy to give that discretionary effort or in other words, go the extra mile.
I guess a 4-day working week is the next step but I think there is still a lot to be done to ensure both employers and employees get the right outcome.
When I worked for Aberden City Council, I requested a 4 day week and added the hours from the Friday off to the 4 working days. I thought it was a good idea in principle but I was utterly exhausted working from 8am till 8pm or sometimes 9pm 4 days a week and often weekends.
It was difficult to find a balance due to the work load but I preferred having a longer weekend.
It is hard to squeeze full-time hours into 4 days instead of 5 days and the benefits of a long weekend can be outweighed by the sheer exhaustion, as you experienced Mia Middleton
I think that's why there needs to be a radical change in the expectation of what a full-time working week looks like. Large organisations will need to lead the way as it would be easier for them to implement.
Agreed!
Same as Mark, I did a spell of 4 day weeks over a few months to use up holidays and it definitly agreed with me too. The challenge is that if everyone in the company wants a friday off, who is providing the customer with the service they need? I know as a customer it can be frustrating and sends the message that you don't really want the business. I would say, so long as the customer gets what THEY want from your business firstly, no harm in finding ways of working that help you too.
It's great to hear that your company was keen to support your shorter weeks Tim Waters albeit on a temporary basis to use up holidays. However it does show that a 4-day week can work.
Getting over the 'everyone wants a Friday' issue does need flexibility on the part of the staff - having a day off mid-week works equally as well. I think the main hurdle is finding an agreeable salary that is viable for employers and employees.
Thanks Nicky. Really good article. So many benefits to a 4-day week, even if these are 4 long days!
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