Australians expect a 4-day working week within 5 years

According to recent studies, Australians are expecting to see a four-day working week become the norm in the next five years.

A poll from Hays found that 40 per cent of the 42,000 Australian professionals surveyed believe this change will become a reality.

Managing director of Hays Australia and New Zealand, Nick Deligiannis, commented: “The four-day work week has been a topic of discussion for several years, but the pandemic shifted the way we work, and now many professionals continue to prize flexibility.”

“Proponents argue a four-day work week can boost productivity, improve employee morale and wellbeing, and reduce stress and burnout. At a time of talent shortages, it can also aid candidate attraction, engagement and retention.”

According to the poll, some believe a four-day working week will come sooner, with 16 per cent saying it will happen within a year. Another 21 per cent say it will take 10 years, and 23 per cent believe it will never happen.

Mr Deligiannis continued: “However, there are also concerns about the practicalities. Many employers worry that a shorter work week could lead to decreased productivity, increased labour costs in organisations that require staff onsite five days a week and increased pressure on staff to meet current outcomes in fewer hours.”

“Despite this, it seems that many workers are optimistic about the prospect of a four-day working week becoming a reality. As organisations continue to experiment with different working patterns, it will be interesting to see if this optimism is justified and whether the four-day work week will become more widely adopted in the years ahead.”

Many organisations have already trialled a four-day week in Australia, including Unilever, Bright Agency and Our Community.

According to Hays, many companies that are implementing this scheme are following 4 Day Week Global’s “100-80-100” principle.

4 Day Week describes this model as: “Employees receive 100 per cent pay for 80 per cent worked with 100 per cent productivity targets achieved.”

Hays outlined four ways to help organisations implement this trial:

1. All work stops on day five, and an organisation shuts down entirely for one extra day a week.
2. Teams or individual staff members stagger their days off.
3. Different departments adopt different work patterns, such as shorter days worked across all five days.
4. Hours are seasonally adjusted, with staff working 32 hours on average per week across the year.

This data coincides with Robert Half’s recent report, which found that 71 per cent of business leaders are considering implementing a four-day week in the next five years.

David Jones, senior managing director at Robert Half Asia-Pacific, commented: “During the pandemic, remote working on a full-time basis was anticipated as the future of work, but as time has moved on and organisations continue to learn, it has become apparent that a more efficient balance must be achieved.”

With this in mind, more companies could begin making the switch and promoting four-day weeks in the coming years.

Jack Campbell

Jack is the editor at HR Leader.