Two hundred British companies have now made the four -day working week a fixed part for all staff – without cutting the salaries – a step announced by supporters as a fundamental reinvention of the country’s work culture.
The latest figures of the 4 Day Week Foundation show that these organizations together have more than 5,000 people, where charities, marketing agencies and technology companies are among the most enthusiastic adopters. Proponents claim that the traditional pattern from Monday to Friday is no longer compatible with the modern lifestyle, in which Joe Ryle, the campaign leader of the foundation, insists that “the five -day working week from 9 to 5 100 years ago and no longer is suitable for a purpose ”.
Ryle added: “With 50% more free time, a four -day week gives people the freedom to lead a happier and fulfilling life. As hundreds of British companies and one municipality have already shown, a four-day working week without wage loss can be a win-win situation for both employees and employers. ”
Marketing, advertising and PR companies are at the forefront-30 of them have already embraced the policy-followed by 29 from the charity, NGO and social healthcare sector, and 24 from the technology, IT and software sector. Another 22 business, advisory and management companies have also committed themselves. A total of 200 companies have decided to maintain a shortened schedule because they say that this improves both the preservation of employees and productivity by reorienting the work to fewer hours without this being at the expense of the output. London is the most enthusiastic region, with 59 of these workplaces in the capital.
Nevertheless, the trend points to wider tensions around the post-Pandemic work culture. Many employees in Great Britain are still trying to achieve more flexible regulations or regulations, while leading American companies-including JPMorgan Chase and Amazon-have issued some of the strictest ‘return-to-office’ mandates. Lloyds Banking Group, closer to home, is said to weigh the extent to which personal presence influences the bonuses of senior employees.
Dissatisfaction has already led to dismissal in some circles. A group of employees left at Starling Bank after the CEO had demanded that they would be present at the office more often. In the meantime, several high Labor characters-in particular the Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner-have expressed personal support for a four-day week, although the party has avoided to take this as an official policy since she came to power, possibly on care of the Fueling partisan debates.
Research by Spark Market Research shows that younger employees in particular invest in scrapping five -day working hours. Of the 18-34 year olds, 78% believe that a four-day working week will be the norm within five years, and 65% do not want to return to a full-time office life. Managing Director Lynsey Carolan notes that mental health and overall well -being drive this shift, and says that younger employees “do not intend to return to old -fashioned work patterns” and consider a short week as a significant improvement in the quality of life.