Will companies move to four-day work weeks?
- Experiments have shown four-day work weeks can be successful
- Supporters say short weeks mean healthier and more productive employees
- Opponents argue businesses won't be competitive with a 32-hour week
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(NewsNation) — Trials of four-day work weeks have been successful, with happier workers and no loss of productivity. Now, some companies are starting to make shorter work weeks a standard practice.
Not everyone is behind the idea of a shorter work week, and there continues to be debate over the practice. But some lawmakers, including California Rep. Mark Takano and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, are working to make the standard work week just 32 hours, with no loss of pay for workers.
DNSFIlter CEO Ken Carnesi switched his company to a 32-hour week and joined NewsNation to talk about the change. The company decided to make the shift during the pandemic, when employees were working remote.
“We wanted a way to decrease employee burnout, increase morale and let them rejuvenate. And the results have been fantastic,” Carnesi said.
Carnesi said schedules are arranged so there are always people working to keep things running. As a result, his company has seen fewer unexpected absences.
“As opposed to taking sort of unpredictable days off, or sick days or whatnot, employees are actually arranging for their dentist appointments, or their doctor appointments or anything like that, to actually take place on the Friday that they had off,” he said.
The arrangement has also boosted the company’s efforts to recruit and retain staff.
“Especially given the fact that our four-day weeks are actually 32-hour weeks, we’re not talking four 10-hour days,” Carnesi said.
