More than 3,300 workers at 70 UK companies will begin a four-day work week trial from Monday (6 June), in the biggest trial of its kind to date.<\/p>\n
The programme is being coordinated by 4 Day Week Global in partnership with the UK think tank Autonomy, the 4 Day Week UK Campaign and researchers at Cambridge University, Boston College and Oxford University.<\/p>\n
The pilot<\/a> <\/strong>will run for a period of six months with no loss in pay for employees over the period. It runs alongside similar pilot schemes taking place in Ireland, the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.<\/p>\n The Guardian reports<\/a> <\/strong>that the trial is based on the 100:80:100 model \u2013 100% of pay for 80% of the time, in exchange for a commitment to maintaining 100% productivity. Researchers will work with each participating organisation to measure the impact on productivity in the business and the wellbeing of its workers, as well as the impact on the environment and gender equality.<\/p>\n Government-backed four-day week trials are also due to begin later this year in Spain and Scotland.<\/p>\n Shift in working\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Top business leaders have indicated that they are broadly in favour of a four-day work week, providing it does not impact productivity.<\/p>\n The World Economic Forum\u2019s annual meeting<\/a><\/strong> in Davos at the end of Amy focused heavily on the issue, with much of the concern focusing on how working from home \u2013 or for only four days a week \u2013 could impact productivity and workplace dynamics.\u00a0 Employers want their teams back together in the office and employees want the same, but not all of the time.<\/p>\n However, the previous \u2018weekday, nine-to-five, in the office\u2019 paradigm appears to be a relic of the past. Many workers now prefer a hybrid arrangement that gives them the flexibility to work remotely for at least part of the week.<\/p>\n