Work Less, Rest More
It feels like we’re perched on the edge of a radical shift in our relationship to our work. When Senator Bernie Sanders introduced a bill to reduce the national work week to 32 hours for full-time pay, he noted that Americans work longer hours than workers in any other wealthy nation.
TIME Magazine reported last year on two six-month pilot programs that included 33 companies and 903 employees, primarily in the U.S. and Ireland. Conducted by the non-profit organization 4 Day Week Global (4WDG), the trials confirmed that a shorter work week is better for both employees and employers.
“We knew the results were going to be good,” said Charlotte Lockhart, co-founder of 4DWG. “The only thing that surprised us is that they were so good.” Both employers and employees overwhelmingly judged the new schedule a success.
The group has documented impressive findings from its numerous studies of organizations that have implemented a 4-day work week, including:
· 36% revenue increase over the prior year
· 42% decrease in employee turnover
· 63% increase in ease of attracting talent
· 64% reduction in staff burnout
Interviewed recently on the PBS New Hour, Alex Soojung-Kim Pang, Director of Research & Innovation for 4-Day Week Global says, “The average knowledge worker loses about two hours a day of productive time to overly long meetings, poorly used technology or outmoded processes.” He says, “In a sense, the 4-day week is already here,” but we’re not acknowledging it or benefiting from it.
Nonprofits Take the Plunge
The idea has begun to gain traction in the US social sector. The News Hour segment profiled the experience of Denver food pantry Metro Caring. A couple years ago, CEO Teva Sienicki was on the verge of leaving due to burnout. During the pandemic, the city’s food insecurity skyrocked. Staff couldn’t keep up with demand and turnover was high. After a job- and health-saving sabbatical, Sienicki proposed Metro pilot a shorter work week.
They ran a six-month trial run of a 32-hour work week, experimenting with such productivity-boosting strategies as turning off email alerts and shortening meetings. In a post-trial survey, 46% staff indicated they were highly satisfied with their work-life balance, compared to just 8% beforehand. And the proportion of staff who reported feeling burned out was half (25%) of what it had been before the trial. Metro learned that a shorter week increases focus, reduces the need for frequent breaks and lowers stress.
CEO Sienicki is enthusiastic about the benefits for herself, her staff and the people they serve: “Working 35 hours a week is way better than the 50 hours I was working before.”
Several nonprofit leaders I know have implemented different versions of a 4-day week. A few that can close their offices on Fridays and make working from home that day optional. Others have limited work for everyone to 32 hours a week, staggering staff days off to ensure client needs are covered. These leaders say their staffs are less stressed to have an extra day to take care of personal business, be with their families and rest.
My colleague Sean Kosofsky, a five-time executive director and founder of The Nonprofit Fixer Consultancy, implemented a successful 4-day week at the last organization he led — Climate Advocacy Lab. In his free post The Complete Guide to Implementing a Four-Day Workweek, Sean describes four phases of assessment, planning and implementation. (See also Resources below for his training describing the thoughtful and inclusive process.)