One thousand workers from across the United Kingdom are preparing to participate in a pioneering national trial of the four-day workweek. This fun and thought-provoking initiative is put together by the 4 Day Week Campaign. Our National Summer Transportation Institute initiative starts the first official test pilot! Its aim is to show that we are able to work fewer hours without reducing wages. The 17 businesses taking part in the trial will do so in order to demonstrate the positive results that can come from a more balanced work-life relationship.
The 4 Day Week Campaign formed as a non-profit organization in 2022. It’s already done the same for four-day weeks in hundreds of firms, improving the lives of tens of thousands of workers all over the UK. Pioneering this shift in the UK has been the almost 200 British companies that have adopted a four-day workweek on a permanent basis. The new trial is sure to add more fuel to this fire.
During the course of the pilot, the majority of participating businesses will adopt a regular four-day week. Other organizations have chosen to go down a different route, with some permanently switching to a shorter working week or a nine-day fortnight. This flexibility, when properly used, empowers businesses to develop innovative solutions that are tailor-fitted to their unique operational requirements. It provides employees the present of even more paid time off.
Joe Ryle, director of the 4 Day Week Campaign, said he was hopeful the landmark trial would lead to a significant expansion of the concept. “We don’t have to just imagine a four-day week anymore, because it’s already a reality for hundreds of businesses and tens of thousands of workers in the UK,” he stated. Ryle agrees that implementing a compressed workweek would be a major help to recruitment, especially for support office positions.
These conclusions from our pilot would be taken to the prospective Labour government in summer 2024. Ryle remarked, “We look forward to presenting the results of this latest trial to the new Labour government next summer.”
Despite growing interest in the concept, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government indicated that a four-day week “is not government policy or something we are considering.” Internal support for the idea runs deep. More than 500 civil servants organized by the PCS union at the ministry have signed a petition demanding the implementation of a four-day workweek.
The 4 Day Week Campaign is making waves! Its ultimate goal is to make shorter working weeks a regular occurrence across the UK. This trial will grow even further later this year when four new businesses join the program. Their participation will take this effort to the next level.