How could a 4-day work week impact small businesses?

Productivity increase
Most trials saw the productivity of the workers increase or at the very least stay the same. The results of one trial in New Zealand saw a 20% productivity increase when they switched to 4 days per week.

Less absences or sick leave used
If one of your concerns about working fewer hours is business continuity, a shorter week can help reduce disruption by minimising staff absences. In fact, one Glasgow based marketing company said that sick leave was at an all-time low during their 4-day work week trial.

Aids recruitment & retention
After a year or two of working at home, many employees have been enjoying flexible working models. A shorter working week could be an attractive benefit for recruiting new staff and retaining existing staff, which is exactly what one London-based comms agency said when they switched to a shorter week.

Happier employees with lower stress
A company in New Zealand saw their staff stress levels drop by 7%, while people felt work/life balance improved by more than 10%.

Reduction in office costs
With less people in the office, you might find yourself saving on electricity, heating, paper and ink. This was the case for Microsoft Japan during their 4-day week trial where there was a 23% reduction in electricity use and a 59% decrease in pages printed.

Lower carbon footprint
Less people commuting can greatly reduce the environmental impact of driving cars every day. The reduction in frivolous printing and heating an entire office can also have a positive impact.

Creating a more gender equitable workplace
With nearly 2 million people not employed in the UK due to childcare needs and 89% of those being women, giving some time back to employees can help mitigate the gender gap in jobs.

An extra day of spending
Even if you’re not changing to a 4-day work week, others doing so could benefit your business. It’s like adding an extra day to the weekend and could increase footfall in times that used to be slow.

A possible rise in costs
For shiftwork or a job that needs 24/7 staff, there would likely be a rise in staff costs to cover shifts. This was the reason for ending a six-hour work day experiment at state-run nursing homes in Gothenburg, Sweden as the cost of hiring new staff to fill gaps in the rota became untenable.

Business shutdown
If everyone is off on Fridays that means the business effectively shuts down for 3 days straight. While this may be manageable in some industries, it can be quite challenging in others.

Exacerbate classism issues
The shorter weeks are more realistic to implement in corporate or white-collar jobs meanwhile; many blue collar or shift-based jobs may find the switch to challenging to do without pay cuts. According to Asheem Singh, Economic Director of the Royal Society of Arts, splitting the labour force in this way may create greater class divides.

Complex to implement
Between contract regulations, spreading out days off and finding an adaptation that works for all staff, it can be hard to implement. In London, a major company called Wellcome was in favour of a 4-day work week until their research showed that they could not fit together all of the teams’ needs without causing significant disruption and threatening operations.

Staying competitive
Working one less day a week can make it difficult to stay on top of competitors. One company based in Oregon, USA had to move back to a 5-day week after years of a 4-day week when they found it was hurting their competitive edge.

Collaboration challenges
If people are in and out of the office on different days, it can make it challenging to have a meeting with everyone present and reduce the collaborative capacity of your team.