Three Day Weekends for UK Workers in test run, largest 4-Day-Work-Week trial

By Dana Malcolm

Staff Writer

Thousands of workers in the United Kingdom will have a three day weekend for the next six months as they participate in a four-day workweek experiment.

The pilot program was created by Four Day Work Week Global and will see employees retain their full salary with one day less of work, but there is a catch.

Four Day Work Week says the trial will use a 100:80:100 model of work, in this model employees must retain their level of productivity completing the same goals they do in a 5-day work week.

Despite similar trials being attempted in Canada, the US, Australia and New Zealand with 3,300 workers across 70 companies, this trial is the largest of its kind.

The companies are not just corporations either included in the list are business that deal with “education; banking; care; financial services; IT software training; professional development and legal training; housing; automotive supply services; online retail; sustainable homecare; skincare; telco; animation studios; building and construction recruitment services; food and beverage and hospitality; digital marketing; and comprehensive case management services for people recovering from traumatic injury.”

Joe O’Connor, CEO of 4 Day Work Week Global said the COVID-19 pandemic was instrumental in the push for this project.

“As we emerge from the pandemic, more and more companies are recognising that the new frontier for competition is quality of life, and that reduced-hour, output-focused working is the vehicle to give them a competitive edge…workers from a diverse range of industries can produce better outcomes while working shorter and smarter,” he explained.

The pilot program will run from June to November this year in partnership with think tank Autonomy, the 4 Day Week UK Campaign, and researchers at Cambridge University, Oxford University and Boston College.

Researchers will monitor progress and efficiency to see if the truncated work week is a plausible way forward for employees in the UK.