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New rights for workers to demand a four day week - Views from small business owners wanted

ended 02. September 2024

A journalist at a national newspaper would like reaction from small business owners to the news that workers are to be given new rights by the Government to demand a four-day week in a law planned for this autumn.

A system of “compressed hours”, which lets an employee work their contracted week’s hours in four days rather than five, will be included in the package of new rights for workers.

The Government has since denied it will force businesses to allow staff to work a four-day week, but said it supports flexible working.

We'd love reaction from small business owners on these new rights. Do you support it? Eg. Is it a positive step towards employee wellbeing and work/life balance or will it be blow to productivity? All views welcomed.

9 responses from the Newspage community

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Editor
Michelle Lawson
Director at Lawson Financial
Another piece of dangerous policy for small business. Small businesses have long been mooted as the backbone of the economy. A lot of which will have a small workforce. Not all businesses have the practicality or resource to support this. If an employee is being paid to do a role it should be on the terms set out by the employer and it is down to the employee to ensure they can adhere to it. Most employers would be sensible with good employees to try and accomodate needs due to life changes but an automatic right is a can of worms.
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Gabriel McKeown
Head of Macroeconomics at Sad Rabbit - Substack Newsletter
Gone are the days of a four-day workweek being merely a whisper in the corridors of progressive workplaces; it is now a potential legislative reality. With the promise of a shortened workweek akin to a siren's song, the allure of a four-day workweek is undeniable. Yet, despite the natural ‘too good to be true’ suspicion surrounding anything that feels remotely utopian, this policy could be a beacon of hope for improved mental health and enhanced productivity. Furthermore, it is hard to discount the overwhelmingly positive results from the recent policy trial in 2022. Of course, implementing a four-day workweek is not without its legal complexities, as while employees may be dancing in the streets, employers could find themselves caught in a tango of logistical nightmares, increased operational costs, and reduced output. Yet by daring to dream of a radical new approach to work, it has the potential to turn the vision of a balanced life and a thriving economy into a tangible reality.
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Tony Restell
Founder and Director at Social-Hire.com
This proposal totally defeats the purpose of a four-day week!

If you simply force your employees to work longer hours during the remaining four days of the week, the wellbeing and productivity benefits are lost.

Like many small businesses, we have made a great success of a four day week in the last years. Our team achieve as much in four days as they used to achieve in five. But by being more productive and reaping the benefits of working fewer hours and being better rested.
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Caroline Kelly
Director at The Lovat, Loch Ness Limited
Idealism v Realism.
We love the idea of a 4 day week and talk about it alot, in particular for our kitchen team...realistic though?

We live in a small village in the Highlands of Scotland with limited rental accommodation. We already house 18 staff living in. To move to a 4 day working week in all departments would make it impossible to function as we would need more staff to operate the business. I think some departments would struggle as well eg. housekeeping because they need to do a certain amount of work in a set time. We are a relatively seasonal business so what would happen off season and would more down time in a rural community lead to additional social issues?

If we could make it work we would!
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Sam Kirk
Managing Director at J-Flex Rubber Products
I'm not completely convinced that this will have a positive impact on wellbeing, and for some it may even have a negative impact as they attempt to cram 5days worth of work into 4days.

If the aim is to boost wellbeing, there are a raft of fantastic intitiatives that many small businesses have introduced in recent times such as: flexible working, health/mental health/fitness schemes, recongition/perk programmes and dedicated days off for birthdays/anniversaries or CSR-related activities.
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Rachael Dines
Founder & Director at Shake It Up Creative
Choice and flexibility is so important, both now and into the future. This isn't just about accommodating employee parental and caring responsibilities but also about being responsive (within boundaries) to the always-on culture we have through our mobile technology. As a small business owner that went into self-employment for flexibility, I greatly appreciate having the choice about when I work and in fact, some of my best work has been done late at night when I can achieve greater focus. I fully support an option for compressed hours to be available to all, providing it suits all parties involved. What must be considered however, is lone working in flexible office spaces and wellbeing for both business leaders and their workforce.
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Naomi Butters
Co-Founder and CEO at ICENA
In my experience, a four-day workweek can enhance work-life balance, boost productivity, and improve employee well-being, especially for small businesses. However, it’s essential to distinguish between compressing hours into fewer days and genuinely reducing work hours. Compressed hours often increase stress and lead to burnout, which undermines the benefits. A true four-day workweek, with fewer hours, allows for rest, personal time, and family activities, fostering a balanced lifestyle and increasing productivity as employees return more focused and motivated. It can also help working parents with childcare, reducing costs and stress. For businesses, this model can attract talent, increase satisfaction, and lower turnover, fostering a healthier, more sustainable workplace. It's about rethinking work to support a more engaged, resilient workforce.
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Carolyn Hobdey
Co-Founder at Being Human At
Working hours become insignificant when measured against performance, delivery, and outputs. And we're HR experts - we can say that!

As always, it's about trust... One of the key workshops we hold at Being Human At is about trust. Trust is so fundamental, and we have to be able to have honest conversations within teams, to build that trust. It's also about clarity, what is expected of somebody, and to make sure those expectations are very, very clear. Sometimes, a leader may have to be pragmatic about those expectations, considering what they want and expect, as well as what an employee wants and expects. It's not always about compromise, as compromise favours no-one, but it is about listening and responding, and finding ways to work, together, between time in office and time at home, where expectations are met. That's the crucial thing, and the key to employee wellbeing and work/life balance.
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Gary Parsons
Leadership Mental Health Advocate & Inspirational Speaker at Selfish Thinking Co
Naturally, my concern is for leaders who are already stressed and overworked. While the idea of a four-day workweek is promising for employees and I support the concept, it's crucial that leaders are also considered in these plans. Leaders often carry the burden of ensuring productivity and managing teams, and this shift could add to their stress if not implemented thoughtfully. Any move toward flexible working must include strategies to support leaders' wellbeing, ensuring they can lead effectively without compromising their own mental health. Balancing these demands is essential for the success of any such initiative.