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Worldwide initiative tries out 4-day work week

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Published  July 13, 2022 9:57am EDT
I-Team
FOX 5 Atlanta

Companies trying out a four-day work week pilot program

The four-day work week has been talked about forever, but after the pandemic some companies in the U.S. are testing it out. FOX 5 I-TEAM's Dana Fowle looks into the pros and cons of the proposed work initiative.

ATLANTA - Americans began to work differently two years ago, and it has not been temporary. It’s continuing to evolve. And it has set off a global test of the four-day work week. 

"4 Day Work Global" is an international initiative that includes the United States. It’s a pilot program that just got rolling and runs through the end of the year. Participating companies are running on four-day work weeks, and reporting back how it’s going — measuring worker productivity, work-life balance, and employee engagement. 

In the nonprofit group's early work, it shows that a four-day work week made it easier for bosses to hire and retain workers. And, 78 percent of employees were happier and felt less stressed. 

But, what do real people like you think? These two ladies see pros and cons with four, longer days and three off.

"If you can get your work done in four days and off Friday, that gives you time to do your personal business. When you’re working five days a week it’s hard to get off to do your personal business," Judy Sanford said. The funeral home secretary also said it might not be for everyone. "If you have 10-hour days some people can’t function for 10 full hours. Being it’s hard for some people that don’t have that mentality to work 10 full hours a day for 40 hours."

Rodeline Chrispin believes an extra day off a week would be great for families with young children who need to make appointments and to run errands. But, she would be concerned about making less money. 

"The pay would have to be right," she said. 

Those are valid points. But we also ran into man in the tech field who told us his office started a pilot program at the beginning of the year. Stan Martly said it's been a success so far. 

"So what I’ve seen is the work our employees do so far is equivalent to a five-day work week. They just make sure that everything is taken care of on that last day so that upper management can take care of anything that comes in during that time."

A shorter week would work differently for each office, each industry. In some jobs not everyone can take off Friday. For some industries that might work better.