Why a four-day week won’t transform workplace wellbeing

Why a four-day week won’t transform workplace wellbeing

A group of around 30 companies across the UK are taking part in a new trial of a four-day working week.

The pilot is being carried out by the 4 Day Week Global partnership made up of the University of Cambridge, University of Oxford, the Autonomy think tank and Boston College. Under the six month scheme, employees will be given the same pay but will also be expected to deliver the same degree of productivity.

The UK project follows in the footsteps of Iceland where working hours were cut to 35-36 each week for 2,500 workers. An analysis of the outcomes showed how there had been rises in both productivity and wellbeing. Scotland announced plans for its own trial in 2021.

Output focus

The pilot is seen as having the potential to being about a step-change in the nature of work. According to the 4 Day Week website: “The UK works longer hours than most of Europe. It is not making us more productive. It is making us stressed, over-worked and burnt out.

“The four-day week challenges the current model of work and helps companies move away from simply measuring how long people are ‘at work’, to a sharper focus on the output being produced. 2022 will be the year that heralds in this bold new future of work.”

Research backs up the value of shorter working hours to UK staff. A survey by Censuswide for ClickUp found that almost a third were “actively looking for a four-day week” or have already agreed one with their employer.

No silver bullet

“Presenteeism isn’t healthy for anyone, so a more flexible attitude to working hours, with more focus on getting work done rather than time spent at a desk has to be a step forward,” says EAPA UK chair Eugene Farrell.

“At the same time it’s important that HR and employers are clear about what offering shorter hours actually means in practice. Encouraging good mental health isn’t so simple as a four day week, as we’ve seen from more people working from home.

“On the surface WFH means flexibility, more time for family and friends. But it also means no divide between home and work. Sometimes a greater sense of pressure. Isolation. More people working longer without noticing. And what about when extra time at home only exacerbates worries and concerns around relationships or finances?

“Four day weeks may well be a significant part of the future of work for many, but in terms of wellbeing it’ll just be one factor in a complicated picture where listening and understanding individual situations will continue to be critical.”