A pilot program testing a four-day work week in the United Kingdom has been hailed as a “resounding success” after employees reported improved wellbeing and a majority of the participating companies said they would keep the change.

A total of 61 British companies with around 2,900 workers were enrolled in the trial, with employees working an average of 34 hours across four days between June and December 2022, while keeping their existing salary. At the conclusion of the six-month trial, 56 of those companies, or 92%, decided to stick with a four-day work week, and 18 did so permanently.

The findings of this pilot program were released by Autonomy, a British-based think tank that partnered with U.K. academics to conduct the study, backed by 4 Day Week Global, a New Zealand-based campaign that advocates for a four-day work week.

The companies that participated were from a wide range of sectors and sizes and were permitted to design a four-day week policy tailored to their own needs, with the only conditions being that pay was not cut and employees were given a “meaningful” reduction in work time.

A shorter work week was found to improve employees' well-being. Before and after data showed that 39% of employees reported feeling less stressed, while 71% had reduced levels of burnout at the end of the trial. Surveyed employees said they also felt less anxious, less fatigued and were sleeping better.

Employees also said their work-life balance improved, but the benefits were not limited to workers. Administrative data from the participating companies showed that revenues rose by 1.4% on average, weighted by company size, during the trial period. When compared to a similar period from previous years, organizations with a shorter work week actually reported revenue increases of 35% on average — which the study authors said indicated healthy growth at the same time there was a reduction in work.

Data also showed employees were much less likely to leave the companies that participated in the trial program, with staff losses dropping by 57% in the six-month trial period.

“Results are largely steady across workplaces of varying sizes, demonstrating this is an innovation which works for many types of organizations,” said Professor Juliet Schor of Boston College, the lead researcher.

Some employees enjoyed the change so much they said keeping the extra day off each week would be more important than a raise.

Words to Learn 相关词汇

【保持】bǎochí stick with not change (a decision, belief, etc.)

【疲劳的】píláo de fatigued drained of strength and energy

英国试点的每周四天工作制被称为“巨大的成功”，员工说幸福感更强了，大多数参与公司表示他们将保持新制度。

61 家英国公司的约 2900 名工人参加了试验，员工在 2022 年 6 月至 12 月期间每周工作四天、平均34 小时，保持原工资水平。

六个月的试验结束时，61家公司中的56家（92%）决定坚持每周四天工作制，其中18家决定永久实行这一政策。

该试点计划的研究结果由英国智库Autonomy发布，该智库与英国学者合作了这项研究，并得到了总部位于新西兰的“全球四天工作制”组织的支持。

参与试验的公司行业不同，规模不一，根据自身需求制定每周工作时间，唯一的要求是不减薪，并“实际”缩减员工工作时间。

研究发现，缩短工作时间可以提高员工幸福感。试点计划开展前后数据显示，39%的员工表示压力减轻，而71%的员工在试验结束时的倦怠程度有所降低。接受调查的员工表示，他们还感到不那么焦虑、疲劳，睡眠有所改善。

员工们还称，他们的工作与生活更加平衡，但四天工作制不仅仅给员工带来了好处。参与试验的企业的管理数据显示，试验期间，按公司规模加权，收入平均增长1.4%。与往年同期相比，每周工作时间较短的企业，实际上报告的收入平均增长了35%——研究作者表示，这表明在员工工作时间缩短的同时，企业实现了健康增长。

数据还显示，员工从参与试验的公司离职的可能性要小得多，在六个月的试验期内，员工流失率下降了57%。

该研究领头人、波士顿学院的朱丽叶•肖尔教授表示：“不同规模企业的结果基本一致，表明四天工作制是一项适用于多种类型机构的创新”。

一些员工非常喜欢这种变化，他们认为，每周多休息一天比加薪更重要。 (SD-Agencies)