Four-day work week begins: Much more productive for employees and companies

Even before the time of the pandemic, researchers and employers thought that working less could yield more benefits. Now, a large new study has revealed that working four days a week is indeed more productive.

Researchers at the University of Cambridge, supported by Boston College and the think tank Autonomy, worked with 61 companies and organizations in the UK to implement a 20 percent reduction in working hours over a six-month trial period. Various organizations from restaurants to information technologies and financial companies participated in the study. As a result of the six-month study, it was observed that reducing the weekly working time did not have a negative effect on the productivity level.

Employees are more productive

The new report, released this week by Autonomy, shows that the reduction in working hours has significantly improved employee well-being. However, employees experienced 71 percent less burnout and 39 percent less stress during this trial. In addition, there was a significant decrease in the number of sick leaves taken by 65 percent and in personnel turnover rate by 57 percent compared to the same period of the previous year in the companies participating in the study.

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Win-win situation for companies

Reducing the weekly working time does not only have a positive effect on employees. On average, companies participating in the study increased their revenues by 1.4 percent compared to the same period of the previous year. However, 92 percent of companies surveyed said they plan to stay on the four-day work schedule. 18 companies have confirmed that they will permanently switch to a four-day-a-week plan.

A Research Fellow in the Department of Sociology at Cambridge University, Dr. “The results really encourage us,” said David Frayne in a statement announcing the results of the study.

2900 employees and 61 companies participated in this new study. Therefore, this research is the largest and most comprehensive of its kind. Professor Brendan Burchell, who led the Cambridge University side of the research, said: “Before we tried it, many were questioning whether we would see a productivity increase that would compensate for the reduction in working time; however, this is exactly what we found.”