Would we all be better off working four days a week? New Zealand company claims trial was a success with NO loss of production (and much happier staff

A New Zealand company which trialled a four-day working week for its employees has declared the unique experiment a success. Perpetual Guardian, which manages trusts and wills, carried out the eight-week trial earlier this year, with staff still paid as if they were working a normal five-day week. The trial gauged whether the shorter work week was beneficial to both the company and its more than 200 employees and the impact it had on office productivity.

The company announced the results of the experiment on Wednesday, with staff engagement increasing by 24 per cent across the board during the trial.

Staff were more creative, had fewer sick days, were more punctual and finished work early less often.

'What we've seen is a massive increase in engagement and staff satisfaction about the work they do, a massive increase in staff intention to continue to work with the company and we've seen no drop in productivity,' Perpetual Guardian managing director Andrew Barnes told the New Zealand Herald.

'Our leadership team reported that there was broadly no change in company outputs pre and during the trial.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5965129/Company-trials-four-day-working-week-wont-believe-boost-gave-bottom-line.html

Sounds good but are they only paid four days wages. Many need their full wage to live.

magica wrote:Sounds good but are they only paid four days wages. Many need their full wage to live.

You may have missed this part Magica

Perpetual Guardian, which manages trusts and wills, carried out the eight-week trial earlier this year, with staff still paid as if they were working a normal five-day week.

Of course employees are going to like that. I'd love to work four days a week and get the same pay as I get now. Chance would be a fine thing though.

Most people simply switch to hourly basis. Ie, if you work four days a week, you work ten hours a day. It still turns out to be a 40-hour week.

Parking and commute expenses and time are less, and in some cases employer overhead is less.

Raggamuffin wrote:Of course employees are going to like that. I'd love to work four days a week and get the same pay as I get now. Chance would be a fine thing though.

Yes, quite.

A lot of farmers, orchardists, and many self-employed craftspeople and artisans, are already working way more than 35 or 40 hours a week, spread over 6 or 7 days (the original 'flexi-timers'..)

They only wish they could fit it into a "four day work week"..

Compressing 50 or more hours work, plus meal breaks, into 4 days would make for some long working days; (for example, 60 hours over 4 days equals four 15-hour days every week -- anyone who has worked a few "doublers" knows that's okay for a short while -- but not over a whole years work, let alone your whole working life..).
And imagine all of the neglected livestock and small chores that woul result..