Is the Four-Day Workweek an Option for Your Business?

The workspace is changing in spades these days, with remote work—once a taboo topic in some offices—being commonplace, along with resignations in the face of a return to the office becoming more of a regular occurrence. Employees want more control over their work schedule so they can balance their personal responsibilities with their professional. A shorter workweek might be the key to making this happen.

Let’s take a look at the concept of a four-day workweek and why it might be beneficial for not just your employees, but your business as well.

The Four-Day Work Week, in a Nutshell

Compared to the traditional five-day workweek, employees might only visit the office or log on to their work computer four days out of the week. The important thing to take away from this concept is that there is no pay cut associated with this decrease in workload; your team would still take home the same salary as they would if they worked five days out of the week.

This might sound like an extreme detriment to your business, but think of it this way. The 40-hour workweek came about as a result of a significant limit placed on working hours. In 1890, for example, full-time employees in the manufacturing industry would routinely pull 100-hour workweeks.

What Benefits Could a Four-Day Week Bring?

Some of the benefits of a four-day workweek include the following:

Boosted Productivity

Overworking is a major problem for employees, and it can negatively influence productivity over time. It has been proven time and again that scaling back working hours can increase productivity, with some of the more notable examples including Norway, Denmark, and Germany, all of whom have demonstrated this benefit.

Engaged Employees

Employee productivity is linked to employee satisfaction, something which can have significant benefits for your workforce. If you can make the work week shorter, you provide more opportunity for employees to take time off for healthcare-related reasons or to improve mental health wellness.

No Matter Your Working Hours, We’ll Be There to Support You

Even if your business doesn’t like the idea of the four-day workweek, you will still need the appropriate technology resources available to make sure that your staff can be as productive as possible. To learn more about how managed IT services can help your business, reach out to us at (503) 278-5011.