A number of companies around the world are experimenting with a four-day work week that some say increases employee productivity and happiness. Is a shorter week a win-win for workers and their bosses?
What’s happening:In the 1930s, influential British economist John Maynard Keynes predicted that technology would become so advanced by the time his grandchildren were grown that we would all enjoy a 15-hour work week. The ensuing decades have proven his prediction to be spectacularly wrong. Workers in most developed nations still work around 40 hours a week, even more in some nations.
Why there’s debate:There’s significant evidence that the modern economy is overly hard on workers. People actually get more done in less time if they’re feeling less stressed and more rested. The policy could also help unemployment by creating opportunities for part-time workers to take on the leftover hours.
A four-day work week, some argue, is unfeasible in those industries that require staff throughout the week. Others say it should be up to individual companies, rather than governments, to decide on working hours. A shorter week would help address gender inequality.“Many have argued for the four-day workweek, or flexible hours in general, as a way to retain talented female workers who might otherwise quit altogether in order to have children.”The change would compel workers to avoid time-wasting practices that plague modern offices.
Cutting working hours could lead to lower salaries.“Critics warn the push for a four-day week could backfire with unintended consequences for workers, including by cutting their pay through shorter hours.” — Jeff Stein, Washington Post
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