Participating employees will be closely monitored by a team of researchers who aim to determine whether such work is beneficial to the organization’s employees, the company, the economy and the environment as a whole.

Employees will keep 100% of their salary, but have to be more productive

This is the largest 4-day week experiment ever conducted in the world. For six months, by the end of 2022, 70 British companies, large and small, will switch to four working days per week (32 hours of work). at the heart of this experiment is “100:80:100” model : Employees keep 100% of pay for 80% of the time they work, while striving to be as productive as they would have been if they worked five days a week.

This experiment is organized by the collective 4 day week global, which brings together a four-day week, a 4-day week campaign and a think-tank of all goodwill interests in change to autonomy, which is active on the topics of climate change, the future of work and economic planning. And to measure and evaluate the effects, three major scientific centers are participating in the experiment: the University of Cambridge, the University of Oxford and Boston College.

Also read: To Save The Planet, Work Less… Live A Four Day Week!

For its supporters, the 4-day week has many benefits.

According to the 4-Day Week Campaign, transitioning to a four-day week allows employees to feel more calm, as they have more time for rest, leisure activities and inevitable daily tasks (shopping, cleaning, managing personal finances, kids, etc.) will be. etc.). For employers, such an organization makes it possible to attract the best talent on the one hand and reduce absenteeism on the other (the rest of the employee being in better shape is less likely to fall ill). For the economy at large, this organization helps to reduce unemployment, increase productivity and develop the tourism sector. (People are more likely to travel when they have three free days).

A small-scale, but still large-scale experiment: a four-day week was started in Iceland between 2015 and 2019. During this period, 2,500 employees (ie 1% of the country’s workforce) lent to exercise. A significant gain in productivity was then observedInspiring other countries around the world to experiment with the 4-day week.

Image: © Shutterstock.com.