A New Zealand company gave all 240 of its employees an extra day off a week - with no pay cut. After eight weeks, not only did workers report less stress and more job satisfaction, but they were just as productive (if not more so) in four days as they had been in five.
The company, a statutory trust firm called Perpetual Guardian, has now published a white paper for other companies interested in trying the four-day week. Here are their suggestions:
1: BE CLEAR ABOUT THE GOAL
You might want to try a four-day week for the morale boost alone. The white paper shows that workers felt more engaged, stimulated, and empowered, more confident in the leadership team, and more committed to the company, and more confident in the leadership team. But if you also want productivity to remain the same - as Perpetual Guardian did - make that clear to workers.
2: ASK WORKERS HOW TO MAKE IT SUCCESSFUL
Perpetual Guardian asked staff to come up with ways to increase and measure their own productivity. They came up with small changes, from reduced online time to shorter meetings.
3: CREATE A FLEXIBLE POLICY
Offer employees a choice of days off, or even five shorter days (though it’s best if the leadership work a four-day week to set an example.) And allow flexibility to work a full week during occasional crunch times - for example, end-of-the-year financial reporting.
4: TRY IT FIRST
Starting with a trial lets you work out the kinks before setting up a permanent four-day week policy, which might require legal work. A trial with good data can make the case for the change and allow you to think about the big picture without getting bogged down in technical details.
5. THINK ABOUT YOUR PART-TIMERS
At Perpetual Guardian, one parent working flexible hours on a reduced salary got bumped up to full pay - while keeping her previous schedule. Since many working mothers make similar compromises on salary, a four-day week could help reduce the gender pay gap.
A shorter week could benefit society at large too - taking 20% of commuters off the road every day, giving parents more time to help their children study, and alleviating mental health issues. The first country brave enough to give it a go is likely to find that there’s no adverse impact on the economy.