A hundred UK companies have signed up for a permanent four-day working week for all their employees with no loss of pay, a milestone in the campaign to fundamentally change Britain’s approach to work.
Proponents of the four-day week say that the five-day pattern is a hangover from an earlier economic age.
They argue that a four-day week would drive companies to improve their productivity, meaning they can create the same output using fewer hours.
The two biggest companies that have signed up are Atom Bank and global marketing company Awin, who each have about 450 staff in the UK.
Joe Ryle, the UK campaign’s director, said there was increasing momentum in the adoption of the four-day week, even as companies brace for a long recession.
“With many businesses struggling to afford 10% inflation pay rises, we’re starting to see increasing evidence that a four-day week with no loss of pay is being offered as an alternative solution.”.
Most of the companies that have officially adopted the four-day week are in the services sector such as technology, events or marketing companies. »
