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ong-awaited data from the large-scale UK four-day workweek pilot arrived in February – and results were overwhelmingly positive. Among the 60-plus companies that participated in the trial, from marketing agencies to financial firms, education services to fish and chip shops, 92% of employers said they would continue with a shorter workweek following the programme – with 30% making the change permanent. Among nearly 3,000 employees, 71% reported feeling reduced levels of burnout; there were also improvements in physical health and wellbeing. In many cases, firms that participated in the pilot, organised by non-profit 4 Day Week Global, reported their workers have been able to spend more time with their families, pursue hobbies and take greater personal care. “Our staff have had the intensity of their work ramp up following the pandemic and cost of living crisis,” explains Alison Dunn, chief executive of consumer-advice helpline Citizens Advice in Gateshead. “Burnout has been an issue, so the four-day week has given them space to decompress: we’ve had people spend their extra day off with their children, take forest walks and monetise their hobbies.” Employers on the trial also say a truncated workweek has boosted productivity and output. “When people enjoy having an extra day off, that creates better work-life balance which, in turn, makes people happier and less stressed,” says Claire Daniels, CEO of Leeds-based digital marketing agency Trio Media. “And happier people perform better at work.” Yet, despite these headline-grabbing results, the trial didn’t work for every business. Some firms abandoned the experiment; others haven’t yet made the move to adopt the format full-time. Even those firms continuing with reduced hours are navigating new challenges arising from shortened workweeks. Though this reflects a small portion of the trial’s participants, it means the four-day workweek isn’t an automatic solution for all. ‘We couldn’t afford to give staff one day off every week’ In June 2022, Mark Roderick’s engineering and industrial supplies company Allcap joined the UK four-day workweek trial. After operating at full tilt through the pandemic, the managing director of the Gloucester-based firm hoped that the six-month pilot programme would mean being able to offer his 40-strong team extra rest days. “We rushed it through the business,” says Roderick. “We joined the programme late, and knew it would be a challenge implementing it across five sites. But we wanted to be able to give our staff time off during the summer.” Rather than offer workers a three-day weekend like most of the 61 companies on the scheme, Allcap employees would have one workday off every fortnight. “We’re a trading business – customers call up all the time for manufacturing and construction components,” says Roderick. “We were already on a slightly reduced headcount, so we couldn’t afford to give staff one day off every week.” But even with this bespoke four-day week model, Roderick says his firm quickly ran into problems. “As opposed to 10 normal workdays, we found that employees would have nine extreme ones – once they got to their scheduled day off they were exhausted. Once we factored in holidays, sickness and caring responsibilities, we also struggled to find cover for an employee on their rest day.” As a result, Allcap abandoned its trial two months early at its three main trade sites (its warehouse and manufacturing centres have the resources to cope with a four-day week). Alongside staffing issues, Roderick says the nature of his industry has made the four-day week harder to implement. “If you’re in professional services, you often have project-based work that affords greater flexibility in meeting deadlines. Here, we have milling machines, a trade counter and around-the-clock deliveries – working from home is impossible, so you need a minimum number of staff on site, or you don’t have a business.”