Half of workers ‘tempted’ to move jobs for four-day week, survey finds

Half of workers say they would be “tempted” to move jobs for the offer of a four-day working week, a survey has found.

Researchers at recruitment firm Hays surveyed almost 12,000 companies and professionals and found a slight uptick in the popularity of the four-day week.

It comes after the UK trial of the four-day week found more than half – 51 per cent – of the firms that took part have made the policy permanent, while 89 per cent are still operating it.

While the French president Emmanuel Macron recently had to postpone a key summit on the future of flexible work because too many participants would be off during a bank holiday.

And communities secretary Michael Gove issued a second formal government warning to South Cambridgeshire District Council over its four-day week trial, citing “ongoing concerns”.

Hays spoke to 11,900 firms and workers and found that 11 per cent of employers are trialling or have brought in a four-day week policy, compared to seven per cent last year.

While 78 per cent of companies offering the policy said it helps with candidate attraction – but 28 per cent said they’d be more likely to offer it if staff were in the office every day.

The policy was popular with some workers, with 51 per cent tempted to move jobs to work less, while 12 per cent said they would not be interested, a rise from six per cent last year.

Joe Ryle, director of the 4 Day Week Campaign, said: “A four-day working week, with no loss in pay, has real momentum and is being trialled and adopted up and down the country.

“After Covid, nobody wants to work a 9am to 5pm, five-day working week anymore and employers are beginning to embrace this change.” 

He added: “It appears that the early pioneers are reaping the results, with improvements in productivity, worker wellbeing and job satisfaction recorded.”

But Chetan Patel, managing director of Hays London City, said: “Although our research indicates a very slight increase in employers who have implemented a four-day working week, despite most employers now offering flexible and hybrid working, the transition to a four-day workweek represents a more substantial cultural and operational change. 

“At the moment this still feels out of reach for a lot of employers. Nearly three-quarters of employers aren’t considering the change at all – and although a four-day week might still stand out to potential jobseekers, there’s lots of other ways to offer flexibility. 

“Hybrid working is still non-negotiable for most professionals. Without taking the leap to a four-day week, employers could consider offering flexible hours, adaptable start and finish times or even early finishes during summer to stand out from the crowd in a bid to attract talent.”