{"id":645,"date":"2019-10-04T00:00:55","date_gmt":"2019-10-04T00:00:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/joblookup.com\/explore\/?p=645"},"modified":"2020-06-29T10:22:09","modified_gmt":"2020-06-29T09:22:09","slug":"the-32-hour-working-week-would-it-really-work","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/joblookup.com\/explore\/the-32-hour-working-week-would-it-really-work\/","title":{"rendered":"The 32 Hour Working Week – Would it Really Work?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Shorter working weeks have become a hot topic recently. Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell announced at the recent Labour Party conference that if elected, a new Labour government would introduce a 32-hour working week within a decade. <\/span><\/p>\n

Much like remote working<\/a>, which was unthinkable around 20 years ago, the benefits of a four day week are now being recognised. It’s a popular idea too – who doesn’t want to work one less day a week? As the reality of fewer working hours has become more tangible, some companies and governments have put the idea to the test.<\/p>\n

What then, are the quantifiable benefits to working less, and are they limited to a better balance between life and work alone? To find out, we can start by looking at how successful shorter working weeks have been when they’ve been trialled, as well as how the UK could implement such a scheme in the future.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Existing Schemes<\/h2>\n
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The concept of reducing working hours isn’t a new one, of course. France reduced their weekly employment hours from 39 to 35 back in 2000, and Sweden recently trialled a six-hour working day.<\/p>\n

In France, some of the positives were immediately obvious – a better work\/life balance for staff, for example. Some experts have also suggested that lower working hours have, converse to expectations, been a major contributor to France’s high productivity over the last decade.<\/p>\n

There are problems of course. The policy of shorter hours isn’t fixed across all sectors – workers can work more than 35 hours in some cases, and many do thanks to several exemptions in the scheme. It can also be harder for those exempt to get overtime pay as a result.<\/p>\n

\"Stockholm<\/p>\n

These complications have led to actual time worked remaining fairly high. By 2012 for example, average working hours were around 39 for most French employees. Part-time workers in France also tend to work about three hours more on average than their EU counterparts (around 20 hours per week in the rest of the EU).<\/p>\n

In Sweden, some business commentators and researchers expressed concern over the impact on smaller companies and start-ups. Working fewer hours in such business environments could actually lead to more stress, due to the blurring of private and work-life boundaries, they suggested. A six-hour day was found to be effective for larger, more established organisations, however.<\/p>\n

Key Benefits and Dangers<\/h2>\n
\n

The shorter working week has been quite a divisive policy where it has been tested, especially in France. Labour’s proposal would reduce hours even more than the French scheme, so what are the likely benefits and disadvantages for employees and employers, should such a scheme be adopted here in the UK?<\/p>\n

Benefits<\/h5>\n
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Employees could enjoy the following benefits and advantages under a shorter working week:<\/p>\n

    \n
  • A better work-life balance – more time for rest, family, and leisure, as well as more general autonomy over life.<\/li>\n
  • Well paid part-time jobs could become the standard.<\/li>\n
  • Potentially higher job quality.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    This is something of an idealistic view of course, but not impossible. If automation is properly implemented, then some badly paid jobs would simply cease to exist. Less working hours would then make retraining and upskilling much easier, enabling mobility into higher quality and better-paid roles.<\/p>\n

    Productivity should then increase due to the combination of automation and an upskilled workforce. Greater productivity, along with a tax on robotics, could then help to pay for a more comprehensive benefits system to support upskilling workers and those transitioning to new roles. That’s one theory at least.<\/p>\n

    Now let’s look at the potential benefits for Employers and companies:<\/p>\n

      \n
    • Better employee morale.<\/span><\/li>\n
    • A more productive and motivated workforce.<\/span><\/li>\n
    • Less sick days thanks to a healthier and more rested workforce.<\/span><\/li>\n
    • Improved recruitment and retention. <\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

      Several businesses across the globe have already trialled shorter working weeks, as well as giving their employees the option to choose their own hours. New Zealand based The Perpetual Guardian, an estate management trust, is one example. The company trialled a four-day working week last year, and reported the following results:<\/p>\n

        \n
      • Satisfaction with work increased by 5%.<\/span><\/li>\n
      • Stress levels were reduced by 7%.<\/span><\/li>\n
      • 24% of the workforce felt they were better able to balance their work and personal lives. <\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

        Many UK businesses have trialled the idea as well. Synergy Vision, Intrepid Camera Company, Elektra, and Lara Intimates all tried a six week period where staff only worked from Monday to Thursday. Overall, they found that staff morale increased, as did productivity.<\/p>\n

        The trial also proved popular with most employees. One member of staff at Elektra summed it up thus: \u201cTwo days out of seven is just enough to recover from a stressful week. Three is enough to recover and have extra time to do something else.”.<\/p>\n

        \"Coconuts<\/p>\n

         <\/p>\n

        Disadvantages<\/h5>\n
        \n

        There are, of course, some potential downsides to consider. Employees could face the following issues:<\/p>\n

          \n
        • Working the same hours or more, as they do now regardless, despite the week being shorter.<\/span><\/li>\n
        • Those wanting to work more hours might be unable to do so.<\/span><\/li>\n
        • Earnings could drop.<\/span><\/li>\n
        • Claiming overtime could become unnecessarily convoluted. <\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

          Many of these problems can already be seen in France. Complicated implementation has led to a serious divide in opinion of French workers, and some are unable to take advantage of a shorter working week. UK staff could face the same issues. How severe these issues become ultimately rests on how the UK approaches rolling out such a scheme. Noting the problems of the French model would certainly be a good place to start.<\/p>\n

          Businesses could face the following challenges:<\/p>\n

            \n
          • Some sectors won’t be able to change their schedules, due to the nature of their business.<\/span><\/li>\n
          • Some industries could be negatively affected, especially those that build their business around fixed worker schedules. <\/span><\/li>\n
          • Transitional costs could be very high, especially for larger businesses with many employees.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

            One difficulty of altering or reducing working hours is that it isn’t compatible with every industry. Medical staff are unlikely to see any benefit from a shorter week for example, especially if there are severe staff shortages as there are currently in the NHS. Some service sector businesses may take a hit in profits due to less footfall during the working week as well, although it could be countered that this would even out due to people having more free time to visit cafes and bars overall.<\/p>\n

             <\/p>\n

            Planning, Transition, and Problem Solving<\/h2>\n
            \n

            Overall then, we can see that there are very clear advantages for both staff and businesses when it comes to a shorter working week. More productivity through increased employee happiness, higher staff retention, and a better overall work-life balance are benefit everybody, after all.<\/p>\n

            The problems that do arise are not so much a direct result of cutting back on working hours, but more about cost and implementation. That said, businesses that can’t afford to shuffle employee hours around could be adversely affected.<\/p>\n

            Some of these issues can be addressed in theory. Remote working, faster internet connections, and more powerful portable devices, along with an ever-increasing suite of communication tools, means a workforce doesn’t have to be exclusive to a single timezone – it’s perfectly possible to have a 24-hour customer service team spread across the globe. This solution could help a company maintain a 24-hour presence while also saving on office costs, for example.<\/p>\n

            There are many other factors to consider too – the positive impacts that shorter working hours can have on overall mental health levels (thanks to reduced stress, more free time, and greater autonomy) shouldn’t be underestimated. Less working hours would also mean fewer commuters, which in turn would help lower the climate impact and ease congestion in major cities.<\/p>\n

             <\/p>\n

            \"A<\/p>\n

             <\/p>\n

            Summary<\/h2>\n
            \n

            Would the change to a shorter working week be challenging then? Absolutely, but many of the drawbacks could perhaps be mitigated with careful planning and the right levels of funding.<\/p>\n

            One thing is certain – shorter working hours need to be examined as part of a wider shift in the needs of both businesses and employees. Robotics and AI solutions are becoming increasingly advanced and affordable; Remote working enables access to a global workforce; Employees want a better balance in their lives.<\/p>\n

            When these aspects are considered from a wider perspective, we can see that there is a real need for the evolution of working culture. Changes are coming. Some are already here.<\/p>\n

            The road to less working hours may not be an easy one, then. The benefits, however, coupled with the inevitability of automation, make it one that may need to be travelled soon, regardless of which political party sits in power.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

            Shorter working weeks have become a hot topic recently. Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell announced at the recent Labour Party conference that if elected, a new …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":647,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[12,17,8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-645","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-companies","category-employment","category-news"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/joblookup.com\/explore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/645","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/joblookup.com\/explore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/joblookup.com\/explore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/joblookup.com\/explore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/joblookup.com\/explore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=645"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/joblookup.com\/explore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/645\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1463,"href":"https:\/\/joblookup.com\/explore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/645\/revisions\/1463"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/joblookup.com\/explore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/647"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/joblookup.com\/explore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=645"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/joblookup.com\/explore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=645"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/joblookup.com\/explore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=645"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}