The four day working week – ‘productivity over presenteeism’

?In June more than 3,300 employees at 70 UK companies started a 4 day working week, with no reduction in pay. Yes, you heard that correctly 100% pay for 80% working hours with a commitment to 100% productivity.

They are taking part in a 6 month UK trial?organised by ‘4 Day Week Global’ alongside University researchers from Cambridge, Oxford and Boston College. Researchers will work with the 70 companies involved to measure factors such as productivity and wellbeing, impact on the environment and gender equality.

The whole concept of a ‘normal’ working week was thrown into disarray with the Covid pandemic which hastened the move towards home working and on-line meetings as well as putting into focus our natural preference for work-life balance.

Pedro Gomes, author of ‘Friday is the new Saturday: How a 4 day working week will save the economy’ describes it as a ‘productivity over presenteeism’ approach, a phrase which we thought was so great that we had to borrow it for our title! Pedro reminds us that the Industrial Revolution shifted us from a 6 day week to a 5 day and in the same sense, the technology we have now allows us to do so much more in a shorter time than we did 30 or 40 years ago.

Charity Bank located in our neighbouring town Tonbridge are taking part in the UK trial. Ed Siegel, CEO at Charity Bank, was quoted in the Guardian saying “The 20th-century concept of a five-day working week is no longer the best fit for 21st-century business. We firmly believe that a four-day week with no change to salary or benefits will create a happier workforce and will have an equally positive impact on business productivity, customer experience and our social mission.” Charity Bank are proud to be one of the first banks in the UK to embrace this radical movement.

Sounds like a dream, well how is it going?

Lisa Gilbert, a lending services manager at Charity Bank described her new routine to CNN as "phenomenal" saying that as a carer for 2 elderly parents and a parent of a young child too, the four day week takes the stress out of everyday tasks

"I can really enjoy my weekend now because I've got my Friday for my chores and my other bits and pieces or... if I just want to take my mum out” ?

Claire Daniels of Trio Media , a digital marketing agency, posted on LinkedIn that in July her business performed 44% better with people working 20% less. Her only issue was that it’s hard to discuss the four day week as a plus point when recruiting currently because she can’t say yet whether it will continue – simply because it’s early days in the trial.

We spoke to Neil Simmons , founder of Tunbridge Wells recruitment agency ‘ TN Recruits Ltd ’ who are also taking part in the 4 day working week trial. At the start he posted on LinkedIn:

‘Recruitment is a tough, demanding job and can be stressful at times but extremely rewarding. We believe this move will be fantastic for our team’s mental health and wellbeing’. Neil announced the 4 day week in a surprise event for his team, some of whom punched the air and without exception, every member of the company were feeling positive. Nearly half way through the trial and he is saying this:

‘The top 3 impacts of the 4 day week have been:

·??????We all love hearing the stories of what people get up to on their days off. They certainly get more leisure time but also can get their chores done on a Friday which means they can spend quality time with partners and family at the weekend.

·??????Productivity appears to have remained the same and our revenue has actually increased on the previous 3 months, and also year on year.

·??????The team seem happier and more rested.’

How does a 4 day week impact on employers?

Clearly the first concern of most employers would be that their teams remain as productive as they had been when working 5 days.?There are tracking tools available to help employers check the online productivity of remote working staff. The app Prodoscore recently reported an increase in users of 600%. It measures activities such as emails sent, Teams chats, Slack chats, Calendar event time and more. Basically the equivalent of a manager sitting in your home looking over your shoulder!

In our opinion 4 day week guidelines need to be applied with a degree of trust to gain maximum benefit. Employers need to adapt their mindset regarding what they value in their employees. Bums on seats for 5 days a week, 9 to 5 should never have been the end goal. Employees will always find a way to manipulate the statistics if they are being unduly monitored and it will create an environment of mistrust.

Inevitably there are logistical challenges for businesses that need to keep staff available 5 days a week. They need to schedule a rota to mean there is always someone on call, and plan effective handovers. Neither of which is insurmountable with the technology at our fingertips. There is also the added bonus that a workforce who feel more positively towards the company will be more inclined to offer flexibility themselves, for example putting aside 15 minutes on a non-working day to deal with any handover questions from a colleague. As Neil from TN Recruits confirmed:

‘A lot of planning and preparation went into the trial. We operate a ‘buddy’ system so when you are off your ‘buddy’ covers for you and vice-versa. Putting together two groups ensures everyone is covered and, most importantly, our clients and candidates don’t notice any difference in service levels. The logistics of holidays and covering each other has been challenging but manageable. Everyone has to work a bit harder when their buddy is off but the reward makes it worthwhile.’

The UK was forced into a 3 day working week in the 1970’s when the coal miners strike and ensuing battle between the government and the unions caused an energy crisis, hence 3 day working weeks were introduced to minimise electricity useage. There are parallels to today as we face soaring energy prices this winter and another potential crisis over the use of electricity. Perhaps this will add ‘fuel to the fire’ of calls for a four day working week to become the norm – excuse the pun.

Radical change is always difficult to implement and will not without obstacles. No one solution will ever suit every company. The resulting benefits for society and the environment of a 4 day working week should be sufficient to incentivise us to make it work where we can.

The trial ends in November and as a HR organisation, led by people with policies designed for people, we will be keen to hear the results. It does't work for every company but may be the right option for your organisation. To ask for our expert advice on implementing changes to your organisation's working week or any other HR related issue, please contact the HR Revolution team on: [email protected]