Third of employers would offer four-day week if it was all in the office – survey

Many employers would be more likely to offer staff a four-day week if they were all spent in the office, research suggests.

A survey of 11,800 employers and staff showed strong support for a shorter working week, a trend which is increasing after a recent trial across the country which was hailed as evidence that it could work throughout the economy.

Of the 61 companies that entered the six-month trial, the vast majority extended the four-day week, with around a third making it permanent.

Employment firm Hays said its study suggested almost two-thirds of workers would rather switch to a four-day week, with all four days in the office, while a third of employers would be more likely to consider the change if all four days were spent in the workplace.

Almost two-thirds of employees said they would be tempted to move to an organisation if it was offering a four-day week, compared with just over half in a previous survey a year ago.

Appetite

Gaelle Blake, of Hays UK and Ireland, said: “It’s clear from our research that the appetite for a four-day working week has increased from both professionals and employers, however in reality only 5% of respondents to our survey are working for an organisation where this is actually happening.

“Organisations were quick to adopt hybrid working as a result of the pandemic, however the four-day week is a much bigger cultural and operational shift for many organisations.

“What our research does point to is the importance of flexibility as professionals would be willing to travel into an office more often if there was better flexibility from employers on their working days.

“Whilst the four-day working week is an attractive offering for workers, there’s lots of ways for employers to stand out from the crowd by allowing staff flexibility in the form of hybrid working, flexible hours and more.”