In the year 2022, the interest in working four days a week skyrocketed like never before, also in European countries and in Spain, where the government is preparing aid for companies that want to test this work model, after an idea promoted in Congress by Más País.
We now have the results of a large study conducted by researchers from Cambridge Universities, Boston and Dublin. 33 companies were analyzed. Some of the companies gave their workers every Friday off, while others did not have a common day off.
The investigation started a year ago: in February 2022.
In general terms, the study has positive conclusions: the reduction of the working day has the potential to bring social, economic and climate benefits, social, economic and climate benefits (less commutes to the workplace). When is accompanied by an increase in hiring, it can reduce unemployment. It can also reduce costs in situations where employees experience high levels of stress.
The companies have been very happy
On the part of the company, the experience “has been a success”, say the conclusions of the report. Of the 33 companies 27 filled out a final survey in which they were asked about their experience and if they would continue with the four-day week.
On a scale of 0 to 10, from very negative to very positive, the average company rating of companies is 9. Asked specifically about productivity, companies gave a score of 7.7. Of the 27, 18 are definitely determined to maintain this formand no one is opposed to continue.
In addition, on average the income of the companies increased more than one
percentage point per month during the trial. The increase in revenue was accompanied by a decrease in the number of employees in the participating companies. On average among the 18 companies that provided data on this parameter, there was an increase of 12.16% in the number of employees.
Workers’ conclusions
From the point of view of the workers, on a scale of 0 to 10, from very bad to very very good, the mean overall test experience was 9.1. 97% of employees want to continue the trial.
There is a wide range of well-being indicators: stress, exhaustion, fatigue and family conflicts decreased, while physical and mental health improved. Employees used their day off for hobbies, housework, and personal care.
Still, people put in overtime. Specifically, from 40.83 weekly hours they went to 34.83 and not 32. However, there was a reduction of 6 hours of work. Job stress decreased during the trial period. On a scale of 1 to 5, from never stressed to always, before starting the test people said, on average, that they were stressed at 3.15. This was reduced to 2.95.
Little reduction, although twice as many people reported feeling less stressed. Exhaustion also decreased.