A new six-month trial of a shorter working week has been launched, involving 17 UK companies and more than 1,000 employees. The aim is to test how reducing working hours will impact productivity.
The initiative is the second stage of the 4 Day Week Campaign, which has attracted new participants including Hackney brewery Crate and the British Society for Immunology (BSI).
The main principle of the shorter working week is respected – employees will work four days, but will keep their full salary.
The second stage follows a successful trial in 2022, when 56 out of 61 participating companies eventually decided to go permanent.
Business leaders said the trial had improved work-life balance, reduced stress levels and no significant drop in productivity.
With the launch of new testing, the 4 Days a Week campaign will collect comprehensive data on employee morale, productivity levels and burnout levels.