The pros and cons of a 4 day work week

Henry Ford's five-day workweek was considered a revolution in 1926 when he gave his employees Saturdays off. How kind of him, isn't it? And soon after, in 1932, the five-day week was officially codified for all workers in the United States. But, after a century of Ford's "radical" idea, is the next workplace innovation the four-day work week?

However, companies of all sizes have changed four-day work weeks around the world. In New Zealand, consumer goods company Unilever implemented a 12-month trial of a shorter working week. The four-day working week became a reality in Spain in March 2021 after several dozen companies participated in a pilot project. Fundraising company Kickstarter will pilot the four-day work week with employees in 2022. Additionally, in 2022 home improvement retailer Lowe's adopted a four-day work week.

But that's not all. Scotland, Iceland, Japan, Belgium and the United Arab Emirates all have pilot four-day workweek programs in the works. Additionally, Democratic Congressman Mark Takano has introduced legislation reducing the standard workweek from 40 to 32 hours here in the United States.

The world's most comprehensive trial of a 4-day working week took place in the UK in 2022.

All eyes are on the UK.

To find out if a similar model is possible and supported in the US, over 3,300 UK workers and 70 UK businesses took part in the UK trial.

According to Eagle Hill Consulting, 83% of respondents agreed that a four-day work week would reduce burnout. In a Joblist survey, 94% of job seekers said they wanted a four-day work week. But has the study backed up these claims? Here's what the study showed:

According to 51% of employees, they can do their job to their full potential in 40 hours or less In 85% of survey responses, respondents said it was logistically possible to work four days a week A 4-day work week was cited as a benefit by 94% of respondents About 28% of full-timers would consider a four-day week in exchange for a pay cut

So far so good. But is a four-day work week really a good idea? Well, let's weigh the pros and cons.

What is a four day work week?

Before we get too far ahead, let's do a quick overview of exactly what a four-day work week is.

You could work 32 hours in a four-day work week with no loss in productivity, wages, or benefits. There may be a Monday-Thursday work week with Fridays off, depending on the industry and company. Alternatively, each employee can choose their third day off, or the company may have a different third day off policy on Monday or Wednesday.

Both options have their pros and cons. When everyone works at the same time, collaborative work is enhanced. But the company will be unstaffed when most others are. Individual employees may prefer a flexible third day off, but teams may struggle to do so.

It may seem unorthodox to work a four-day week. Over the past century, however, we have gradually reduced the number of hours worked per week.

In 1890, a full-time employee in a manufacturing plant worked an average of 100 hours a week, according to the United States government. But, in the middle of the 20th century, employees in industry worked an average of 40 hours a week. So, as drastic as it may seem, reducing our current work week to 28 hours is not as drastic as it may seem.

The benefits of a four-day work week

In a report published in The Atlantic, people who work a four-day week say they are healthier, h...