After 4 days of work, 3 days of rest. The advantages of a shorter working week are clear, but is (Czech) society ready for it?
Bold visions that we have not (yet) seen
It was the 1930s when British economist John Maynard Keynes predicted that by 2030 we would be working only 15 hours a week. And in 1965, a U.S. Senate subcommittee predicted that by 2020 the average workweek would be just 14 hours. These were undoubtedly fine predictions. It's just that the year is 2025 and the vast majority of us are still in a regular, minimum 40-hour rush every week. Of course, there are little swallows that could act as a promise of a "better tomorrow". Indeed, there is a growing interest in reducing the working week from five to four days. A number of companies around the world have even begun to test this model. The results have been very good - and so the only question is, will today's super-busy society find the courage to make a fairly fundamental change in the established order?
The 4-day working week - just a wish?
Although the 4-day working week may seem like a utopia from the Czech perspective, the fact is that at least employers operating on the global market are actively interested in this working model. And they are testing it in practice. For example, already in 2019, Microsoft Japan conducted a test of a four-day workweek with very good results. Employee productivity increased, work efficiency increased and in turn costs (e.g. electricity) decreased. So it's no coincidence that the non-profit 4 Day Week Global launched a global program last year to help companies shorten the workweek. So far, nearly 40 companies from the US and Canada and 70 from the UK have signed up.
It is now that 4 Day Weeks Global has also released interim results gathered over a year of testing the 4-day workweek in companies. This has also enabled them to identify the biggest benefits of this shortened working pattern.
When 4 days of work benefits everyone
From an employee perspective, it is clear that the 4-day working week is a welcome change. Key findings from 4 Day Weeks Global show this - employees are happy with being able to spend less time in the office - giving them space for family. On the other hand, employers have not experienced any noticeable loss of revenue or growth even after reducing working hours, on the contrary - in some cases they have even seen increased productivity. So how has the 4-day working week worked out, given the data collected over the year?
Companies that have persisted with the 4-day workweek model have seen a 15% increase in revenue as well as a reduction in employee turnover. "The most profound impact of this new work model has been on employee retention. Since its implementation, very few people have decided to leave our company, which has dramatically improved our ability to achieve our goals and key results each quarter," summarized John Leland, Kickstarter's Chief Strategy Officer. And other representatives of the companies involved also agree that although implementing a 4-day workweek will take some effort in the long run, developing it definitely makes sense. After all, employees are happier and do their jobs so well that many companies have even reduced their working hours (by an hour a week on average).
And what about the Czech Republic?
Although many global trends usually reach us with a certain delay, more and more people are interested in the 4-day working week. According to a survey published in 2023, 70% of people in the Czech Republic would like to try a shorter working week. Although the idea of going to work Monday to Thursday seems rather utopian now, the fact is that a similar radical change in the organisation of time has already taken place in our country. And it was not so long ago. In fact, working Saturdays became a thing of the past only in 1968. And surprisingly, the world did not fall apart. There wasn't even an economic catastrophe - people were just suddenly happier. In fact, the same can be said of the 4-day working week that is being talked about today. It may not happen in the next few years, but experts say that it is inevitable that it will be introduced here anyway. So the question is no longer so much "NOW" but "WHEN".
