The results of the experiment with a four-day working week for office workers in New Zealand

In November 2018, the New Zealand-based company Perpetual Guardian became one of the first in the world to switch to a four-day working week, in which the number of working hours was reduced from 37.5 to 30. This was done according to the results of a preliminary experiment that scientists from the University of Auckland.

An analysis of one of the largest trials of the four-day working week did not reveal a decrease in the volume of production, if for office workers one can speak of “production”. But the bottom line is that the company's business continued unchanged. The scope of work, which was carried out at the five-day week, was preserved at the four-day week, with a decrease in stress and an increase in staff involvement.

The balance between work and personal life is a serious problem for many modern office workers, especially in countries prone to workaholism. For example, in the United States, the right to leave is not even enshrined in law, with the result that conscious people work two jobs year-round, 80-90 hours a week. People suffer from depression, and life quickly flies through the career cycle. The New Zealand experiment gives hope that the problem can still be corrected.

In November 2018, the financial company Perpetual Guardian transferred 240 employees from five days to four days with full salaries. As in the course of a small experiment earlier, employee productivity increased in proportion to the decrease in the number of working hours, that is, there was no drop in the total amount of work done.
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Recall that last time the level of staff stress decreased from 45% to 38%, and the indicators of a harmonious balance of work and personal life increased from 54% to 78%. Scientists have recorded an increase in involvement and other indicators (in the illustration).



After this experiment, Perpetual Guardian released a brochure with recommendations for other companies that want to repeat the experiment and switch to a four-day work week: “This is an idea whose time has come,” says Andrew Barnes, founder and CEO of Perpetual Guardian. - We need to interest more companies to get the idea spread. They will be surprised at the improvements in their company, among employees and in the wider community. ”

The Perpetual Guardian eight-week experiment was closely watched by employers and politicians around the world. His success can now encourage other employers to change attitudes towards staff. Instead of squeezing all the juice out of it, it may be more profitable to make people happier. Business benefits from a higher quality of life for employees.

Now the British research funding organization Wellcome Trust is also considering the transfer of 800 headquarters employees to a four-day week, and the initiator of this socialist revolution, Perpetual Guardian, has received more than 350 requests for information from 28 countries. Everyone is asked to share experiences and instruct how best to make such a transition. Most inquiries are received from organizations in the UK, followed by Australia, USA and Germany.

In the UK, at the state level, conducted a preliminary study of the effectiveness of four days. These preliminary results indicate that productivity growth is difficult to achieve in positions that are associated with a permanent presence, such as retail trade (for example, a cashier-seller), etc. But for office workers of various professions, the effect can really be positive.

The effect is maximum in the first time, when people have euphoria. But further positive signs are noted: people began to get better sleep, concentration and other cognitive indicators increased at work. This increases productivity. Managers say that people have become more creative in solving issues, and not just routinely perform tasks as before.

Additional output was used by employees for normal leisure, but there were also new activities that people previously could not afford due to lack of time. Among them in the polls called such: "spend time with parents", "spend the much needed time to study," "cleaning the house on Wednesday, and then free weekends."

Interestingly, if such significant effects are noted within the same organization, is it possible to change the psychological climate in a wider society, when more companies will go to four days? After all, if people change their personal lives, then the environment changes with them.