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Henry Ford, of Ford Motor Company, is commonly credited with being an early adopter and the tipping point for normalizing the five-day, 40-hour workweek that still largely exists in the US today. This standard was further adopted due to the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) of 1938, which in part mandates overtime pay for work over 40 hours per week for non-exempt workers. Just as Henry Ford challenged the status quo over 80 years ago, that standard is being challenged again. Will your organization be an early adopter to the four-day workweek? Or will you wait to see if new labor laws emerge that require a shorter workweek? Here are five things you need to know about the four-day workweek.

What is a four-day workweek?

A four-day workweek is a decrease in hours worked from the typical 40-hour week to a 32-hour week, but without a decrease in pay. This workweek is different from a compressed work schedule where an employee may work only four days a week but works for 10 hours a day.

Is there support for a four-day workweek?

A company in New Zealand called Perpetual Guardian pioneered the four-day workweek  in 2018. Soon after their successful implementation, companies in Iceland, Japan, Scotland, Spain, and the US also moved to four-day workweeks. France has had 35-hour workweeks for many years but is currently considering moving to a four-day workweek of 32 hours. An Employee Benefits Survey conducted by the Society of Human Resource Management (SHRM) found an increase in companies offering a four-day workweek over three years. This same study concluded that about 15% of US Companies offered a four-day workweek as of 2019. In 2021 Mark Takano, a California Congressman, pushed for legislation that would mandate overtime after 32 hours a week versus the current 40-hour standard. Most recently, in January of 2022, Panasonic, a large electronics corporation, and Bolt, a tech company, have decided to move to the four-day workweek. Some speculate that we are reaching the tipping point, much like we saw with the Ford Motor Company.

Why are companies moving to a four-day workweek?

The world is rapidly changing, and so is business. Several factors have contributed to these changes, including a global economy, advances in technology including Artificial Intelligence (AI), and generational shifts in the workplace. Adding the COVID-19 pandemic to the equation was like pouring accelerant onto a fire. Simultaneously, these factors have brought positives such as innovation, collaboration, efficiencies, and resilience, exasperating any existing negatives such as burnout, unfavorable working conditions, and wage gaps. While a four-day workweek is by far not a cure-all solution, those who favor it tout benefits, including: increased productivity, narrowing the gender gap, higher engagement, reduced overhead expense, and carbon footprint, as well as gains in employee health and work-life balance. An organization called 4 Day Week Global, which advocates for broad implementation of the four-day workweek, indicates through their research that “63% of businesses found it easier to attract and retain talent” and that “78% of employees with four-day workweeks are happier and less stressed.”

How do you implement a four-day workweek?

First, you must identify your obstacles. Connect with your business units to identify the business needs and potential hurdles. While most research on the four-day workweek highlights the wins, there are some hurdles to consider. For organizations that shut down for a full 72 hours, could this lead to a negative customer experience by decreasing the times you are available to support your customers? For exempt employees, will they truly only work four days a week? Some research suggests that exempt employees work an average of 47 hours a week, including evening and weekend work. How will this change impact your culture, policies, procedures, and business and process flows? How will this impact benefits and payroll? It is imperative to identify your hurdles to be able to overcome them.

Next, get creative! Identify solutions to streamline processes and create efficiencies. Look for opportunities to trim off work that is not bringing value or is redundant. Look for ways to shift your culture by emphasizing quality of work over quantity of work.

Then, create a plan that significantly focuses on communication and provides support and resources for adopting.

Finally, try it before you buy it. Start with a small test group of employees. Take the opportunity to gather information and learn what’s going well and any pain points. Shore up any opportunities to improve your implementation before moving your full workforce to a four-day workweek.

Making a business case

While it is not clear yet if the four-day workweek will soon be the standard, some things are clear. Employee burnout is at an all-time high. The COVID-19 pandemic and the Great Resignation have made attracting, hiring, and retaining talent more challenging than ever. Employees are seeking more flexibility, and the generational shift in the workforce brings a “work to live, not live to work, mentality.”

It has long been thought that you can’t buy time, but employers do it every day. With every penny spent on wages, employers buy their employees’ knowledge, ability, skills, and time. Employers can make additional investments in employees by providing training, development, and benefits. Framing the four-day workweek as a benefit becomes an investment in your employees. It would seem then, by paying an employee the same wages that they would typically make working 40 hours while only expecting them to work 32 hours, that employers can, in fact, buy their employees’ free time. Could this purchase of time increase productivity, narrow the gender gap, decrease overhead expense and carbon footprint, reduce burnout, increase attraction and retention rates, provide greater flexibility, all while providing more time for employees to pursue their hobbies and interests? If so, the return on investment would likely be worth it.