What are the benefits of a 4-day work week?

August is a month everyone looks forward to, but particularly so at UnitedUs as it’s officially Summer Hours! Over the past three years, every midsummer, we’ve been working reduced hours and what started out as an experiment has evolved into a ritual that we all look forward to, but why do we do it? What have we learned? And what are the pros and cons of it? Well, I thought I’d jot it all down for you in case you fancied giving it a go.

In recent years, there has been a growing movement to adopt a four-day workweek across a range of industries and countries. This trend is being driven by a number of factors, including the increasing recognition of the importance of work-life balance, the rising cost of living, and the growing body of research that suggests that a four-day workweek can actually lead to increased productivity. But is the reality as good as the promise?

More Time to be With Family and Friends

One of the biggest benefits of a four-day workweek is that it gives our team more time to spend with their loved ones. This can be especially important for parents, who often struggle to balance work and family commitments and in the summer holidays, that can be even harder with childcare considerations. The four-day workweek also helps our team strengthen their relationships with friends, have time for social activities, sports clubs and generally reconnect with parts of their lives that can be put to one side in a busy creative agency.

More Time for Rest and Recovery

At UnitedUs, we value creativity and big ideas, those are hard to come by if you are burnt out. Therefore a massive benefit of the four-day workweek is that it gives employees more time for rest and recovery. It’s important, for more than just mental health. Chronic stress can lead to heart disease, diabetes, and depression. A four-day workweek can really help our team reduce stress and improve their overall health and well-being, and ultimately a stronger team is what we strive to build.

Increased Productivity

This is the question on every CEO’s mind when a 4-day work week is discussed – ‘How do we lose a full day’s work and still deliver projects?’ Despite the shorter workweek, studies have shown that employees can be just as productive on a four-day schedule as they are on a five-day schedule, and we’ve been able to turn those studies into reality. In fact, one of our team said to me this week, “I feel more productive on this four-day work week schedule!” This is because employees are more rested and motivated when they have more time off. They are also less likely to be stressed and burned out, but also the removal of a working day seems to focus the mind and stop procrastination from slipping into our workflow; trusting our gut and our instincts has proved incredibly successful.

Lower Turnover

A four-day workweek can also help to reduce employee turnover, which is huge for us and for larger corporations alike. It’s no secret that when employees are satisfied with their work-life balance, they are less likely to want to make changes. If you are happy at work, happy outside of work, and you are in a place that supports you – then it will take a lot to look elsewhere, and we want to create an environment for our employees to thrive for the long term.

Opportunities to Explore

Everyone at UnitedUs is a creative person. Whether strategist, project manager, writer, designer or developer, everyone is an inquisitive, creative person at their core, and that’s why they thrive at UnitedUs. But creativity isn’t endless, it needs to be fed with new ideas, new experiences, and 4-day week provides space to explore the world around us. From kayaking on the Cuckmere Haven, to exploring the bustling streets of Portugal, building LEGO with your kids to visiting the Van Gogh exhibition at The Brighton Dome – all our experiences fill the bucket of inspiration to pull from as and when needed, and it’s an invaluable time for our team.

What are the Cons of a Four-Day Work Week?

I said at the outset of this small article – I’d be fair and talk about the pros and cons. So what are the cons? To be honest, they are few and far between. The obvious one is that clients don’t tend to work on a 4-day work week, especially for our global clients, so there is an education and adoption process that clients need to go through to understand why we are doing Summer Time hours. The instant reaction is often one of worry, ‘Will my project be delivered on time?’ ‘How do I speak to you in an emergency?’ that kind of thing, but with the right processes in place you can allay any concerns quickly, and clients often turn from concern to envy, with many saying, “I wish my employer did things like that’ which only benefits our brand as a whole. The only other negative is dependent on your point of view. Clearly, working a day less a week means you deliver a day less worth of work a week. We are very careful not to compress five days worth or work into four – that’s in nobody’s interest and removes all of the pros I’ve mentioned in this article. If you and your business can be structured to work on less deliverable work for 1 month a year – then the pros certainly outweigh the cons.

So Does a Four-Day Week Work?

For us at UnitedUs, the value of Summer Time hours is clear: it can lead to increased productivity, lower turnover of staff, a more creatively empowered team, and improved health and well-being for us all. These benefits are not just good for our team, but also for us at Partners.

If you are considering adopting a four-day workweek, there are a few things you need to do to make sure it is successful. First, you need to make sure that your employees are on board with the change. You also need to make sure that you have a plan for how you will maintain productivity and quality. Finally, you need to be prepared to make some changes to your work culture.

A four-day workweek can be a great way to improve the lives of your employees and your business. If you are considering making the switch, I encourage you to do your research and talk to your employees about the benefits of a shorter workweek or reach out to speak to us over a coffee or call.

Keep an eye on our socials as we share the Friday Fun our team are having during Summer Hours!

If you’d like to have a chat about how to support your people by implementing a four-day working week, we’d be happy to have a chat, just get in touch.