Protestors call for a four-day working week to tackle climate change outside Glasgow’s COP26 climate conference in 2021. Image: 4 Day Week Campaign
A four-day week with no loss of pay is a win-win for workers, businesses, and society. The five-day week was created over a 100 years ago for a society that’s unrecognisable today – it’s fair to say it’s time for an update.
The Campaign
4 Day Week Campaign is the UK’s national campaign for a four-day working week. They argue that a four-day, 32 hour working week with no loss of pay can radically improve the general physical and mental health, financial wellbeing, and environment of individuals, local communities, and society as a whole.
4 Day Week Campaign aim for this to be the normal way of working by 2030. They are seeking changes in legislation to enable a four-day week to be implemented across the UK. Alongside longer-term, top-down change in legislation, they support and empower workers and organisations of all kinds to transition to a four-day week through workshops, mentoring, and networking. In doing so, they promote shorter-term change from the bottom up that makes a real difference to the everyday lives of people from all backgrounds, occupations, and communities, particularly those on lower to middle incomes.
A picture of a billboard in Lewisham taken in December 2020 calling for a four-day week. Image: 4 Day Week Campaign
Being shortlisted means so much to us. We have made tremendous progress in a short period of time but know that we need to keep pushing to ensure that everyone in the UK has the right to work a four-day week with no loss of pay. We’d like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who has supported, volunteered, or worked for us – we would not have made it this far without you.”
Joe Ryle, Campaign Director
A picture of a billboard in Lewisham taken in December 2020 calling for a four-day week. Image: 4 Day Week Campaign
We have made tremendous progress in a short period of time but know that we need to keep pushing to ensure that everyone in the UK has the right to work a four-day week with no loss of pay. We’d like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who has supported, volunteered, or worked for us – we would not have made it this far without you.”
Joe Ryle, Campaign Director
The Change
Over the last two years, 4 Day Week Campaign has been at the forefront of a national movement for a shorter working week. In that time, they have collaborated with workers and organisations to accredit over 120 organisations to move to a shorter week and ran the biggest ever four-day week trial in the world (with 60+ companies and 3,000 workers).
They have also had a noticeable positive impact on national and local government. Some of the highlights from the past two years include working with Labour Party MP Peter Dowd to table the first ever four-day week Parliamentary legislation, persuading the Scottish and Welsh Governments to consider implementing a four-day week trial, and working alongside South Cambridgeshire Council to launch the first ever Local Authority four-day week pilot.
The Future
They understand that the transition to a four-day working week will not take place overnight, nor will a one-size-fits-all model work with all organisations. By collaborating with employees and employers, and by putting pressure on the Government to provide support and legislation, they are seeking to improve the current working system to benefit workers, society, and communities across the UK.
