Even as employees return to the office and remote work ends, the office will probably look very different than it did before the pandemic. Across the world, national governments are testing out adjustments to working schedules, including a four-day work week. American companies may soon follow suit.
The Four-Day Work Week
Countries as different as Spain, Japan, and New Zealand are either discussing a switch to a four-day work week or already piloting shorter working hours. While in some countries such as Japan the shorter work week would come with a pay cut, groups in Spain and the United Kingdom have found that most businesses could afford to shorten their work weeks without cutting pay.
Although people would be working less, their overall productivity levels during a four-day work week would not be affected that much. The loss in working hours would be offset by an increase in productivity as workers are less burnt out.
Why Has the Pandemic Impacted the Work Week?
The pandemic, which forced droves of people to work from home, has highlighted how unsustainable the current working culture is. Although Japanese “karoshi,” or “death by overwork,” is infamous, the problems of burnout are by no means unique to Japan. Workers across the globe have spent more hours working as they switched to remote work and boundaries between home and work became more porous.
The Benefits of a Four-Day Work Week
Another way that the pandemic has impacted the workforce has been by increasing unemployment. Many countries are facing large unemployment numbers not just because of the pandemic but also because of increased automation. Shorter work weeks would allow employers to hire more people.
The benefits of a four-day work week go beyond profit and employment numbers. That extra day would allow people to maintain a work-life balance, pursue hobbies, and improve their health. Working less is also beneficial to the environment. Perhaps the disruption caused by the pandemic is an opportunity to rethink the way the world works as more and more workers are experiencing burnout.