The concept of a four-day workweek is gaining traction worldwide as companies seek innovative ways to enhance productivity and employee well-being. Notable examples include Microsoft Japan’s experiment, which reported a significant productivity boost, and Unilever New Zealand’s trial aimed at maintaining full pay for reduced hours.
But many employers understandably remain skeptical of the promised productivity boost and wary of the logistical and legal challenges of implementing a four-day workweek. We spoke to business, HR, and legal experts to get their insight on the challenges and strategies of implementing a four-day workweek for US businesses.
Is a Four-Day Workweek a Good Fit for Your Business?
As with any trendy new business strategy, four-day workweeks aren’t a great fit for every organization. It’s important to think critically of the pros and cons of that model for one’s specific company before diving into implementation.
“When considering if moving to a four-day work week will work for your organization, there are multiple considerations to keep in mind,” says Lisa Sterling, Chief People Officer at Perceptyx. “The first is being clear about the why. Why are you considering moving to this way of working? Your why needs to align with your culture, values, and workforce expectations.”
Sterling advises that soliciting employee feedback is a crucial component of this step. “Understanding their preferences and expectations is important and shouldn’t be understated,” she says. “For some, the additional flexibility will be a welcomed experience and one they will find highly rewarding. For others, this could create unnecessary stress and uncertainty. Will people be concerned about a perceived additional workload, or will it create scheduling conflicts?”
Set Clear Expectations
Understanding staff preferences and expectations is just one side of the coin. It’s important to also be clear and up-front about what the organization expects from staff when switching to a condensed workweek.
“No matter what you choose, it’s important to be super clear about when and how you expect staff to be available and via what media,” says Natania Malin Gazek, founder and principal of NMGazek Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Consulting. “That’s because without clear boundaries to go with the flexibility of a four-day work week, you’ll likely create a 24/7 work culture of staff feeling like they need to be available all the time in case someone needs them,” she says. One way to do this is by setting core hours, Gazek advises. These are times when all staff are generally expected to be available for meetings and in communication with each other.
Depending on the needs, structure, and culture of the organization, it may also be wise to establish some times when staff are not expected to be available for collaboration or other outreach. Gazek says this is an important strategy because “it means that there are hours during each day when staff don’t have to worry that they’re missing important communications or not showing up for colleagues who need them when they are attending to non-work needs or focusing on a work task that requires their full attention.” That, she says, “does wonders for our brains’ and bodies’ abilities to relax and restore.”
Of course, all of these policies and expectations should be clearly, consistently, and proactively communicated to staff to avoid misunderstandings and frustrations later on.
Prioritization and Time Management Are Essential
“The most important thing, no matter what structure you choose for your four-day work-week, is to make sure you’re prioritizing routinely, transparently, and humanely,” advises Gazek “That’s because the less time we have to do our work, the more important it becomes to make sure we’re all aligned on what work is most and least important to get done, she says.
It’s important, Gazek recommends, to regularly take stock of “what work is mission-critical and what work can take a back seat, sharing that assessment with those who work for you, and making a plan together to prioritize and de-prioritize your team’s work or re-distribute it when needed.”
Special Considerations
A lot of the discussion around four-day workweeks focuses on salaried office workers, those who generally get paid the same each year whether they work 32 hours a week or 80 hours a week. But there are plenty of employers of non-salaried workers considering such a shift too, and this raises special considerations, given the requirements of state and federal laws around overtime (such as the federal Fair Labor Standards Act), as well as logistical considerations about the income needs of staff.
“Compensation is still an issue with implementing a 4-day work week,” says Thaddeus W. Wendt, CEO of Feller & Wendt, LLC, a personal injury law firm, serving clients in Utah, Idaho, and Arizona. “Most employees still rely on 40-hour weekly salaries, so truncating to a 4-day work week would either mean a decrease in pay or an extension of their schedule on those days.” Legally, and from a human-resource standpoint, Wendt says, employers still need to maintain full-time hours—and pay—despite working fewer days.
Wendt says that when embarking on a 4-day work week, “it’s important to issue renewed contracts clearly stating the changes to schedules and, possibly, overtime compensation before launching such a major organizational change.”
Another potential legal issue to consider is the impact longer days might have on workers with disabilities. “One of the main legal issues we’re seeing with 4-day workweeks is the potential for employers to discriminate against disabled workers due to extended working hours,” says Stephen R. Hasner, Managing Partner of Hasner Law, P.C.—a Georgia-based law firm. “Ten hours per day can be a lot for some people to maintain, especially if they struggle with brain fog or physical pain and limitations.”
Hasner recommends having the HR team prepared to lobby for employees who face these challenges and to ensure that they receive necessary accommodations to facilitate their work and medically-diagnosed conditions.
Adopting a four-day workweek represents a significant shift from traditional work models, offering a promising avenue for companies to foster a more engaged, satisfied, and productive workforce. As organizations like NMGazek Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Consulting, and Perceptyx highlight, the success of this transition hinges on clear communication, thoughtful implementation, and a commitment to prioritizing work effectively.
By addressing the unique needs of all employees, including non-salaried and disabled workers, companies can create a more inclusive and flexible working environment that benefits everyone. The journey toward a shorter workweek is complex and multifaceted, but with careful planning and open dialogue, it can lead to a transformative outcome for both businesses and their employees.
Lin Grensing-Pophal is a Contributing Editor at HR Daily Advisor.