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+--- Thread: Americans want a four day work week (/thread-7465.html)
Americans want a four day work week - Leigha - Aug 9, 2019
#worklifebalance
At my current employer, we receive a ton of vacation time but I happen to think that a four day work week would boost morale. What are your thoughts?
https://www.inverse.com/article/31616-psychology-long-weekends-summer-fridays-four-day-work-week
RE: Americans want a four day work week - Syne - Aug 9, 2019
Your title is misleading, as there's no poll or anything in that article.
People want many things, but they probably don't want a four day work week pay.
RE: Americans want a four day work week - Leigha - Aug 9, 2019
You've never heard of flexible schedules? That is what is mentioned in the article. Many people would opt to work ten hour days, Monday through Thursday, with Fridays off. Many companies do it, and experience better morale from employees.
RE: Americans want a four day work week - billvon - Aug 10, 2019
(Aug 9, 2019 10:39 PM)Syne Wrote: Your title is misleading, as there's no poll or anything in that article.I think many would be quite happy with a 4 day, 40 hour a week work schedule.
People want many things, but they probably don't want a four day work week pay.
RE: Americans want a four day work week - Syne - Aug 10, 2019
I've worked several jobs that were four 10s a week...at least until their busy time of year. Nothing flexible about them, and depending on the job, that extra 2 hours a day can really wear on you...making it seem like you have very little personal time over that 4 days. That extra day off often ends up being the errands you would have normally done after work, catching up on emails, etc..
But many industries, especially those that have to respond to customers 5 days a week, cannot feasibly have 4 day work weeks. If so, their employees would likely have to cycle the extra day they have off, only getting 3-day weekends periodically.
I'd rather work five 8s a week, and until someone shows me polls of people who've actually experienced 4-day work weeks preferring them, you cannot really say "most" would want it.
RE: Americans want a four day work week - Magical Realist - Aug 10, 2019
"Americans who work above 40 hours weekly on average are open to the idea of working longer shifts to shorten their work weeks to four days, according to a Thursday poll.
Rasmussen Reports conducted the survey on July 19 and July 22 and found 53 percent of Americans would rather have a four-day work week with 10-hour days than five days of eight-hour shifts.
Twenty percent of Americans did not think the switch would make a difference, 15 percent were opposed to a four-day work week and 12 percent were undecided.
Survey questions asked whether the change to four 10-hour shifts was good or bad for employees and whether working four 10-hour days would help, hurt or have no impact on productivity.
American men 25 years and older worked 43.6 hours in an average week while women in the same age group worked an average of 41.0 hours in 2017, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The paycheck for a shorter work week would remain the same, but would require fewer trips to work, according to Nevada Small Business. This could afford American employees a more manageable work-life balance — especially adults with children.
The downsides, however, were scheduling conflicts with the decreased amount of availability for sales, meetings and other administrative tasks. Working an extra two hours a day could also be strenuous for those in labor-intensive jobs.
“The four-day week isn’t for every business or every employee,” Nevada Small Business wrote on its website. “Weigh the options, get input from staff, check the legal implications of switching over to a four-day work week.”
Rasmussen recruited 1,000 American adults for this poll. The margin of sampling error was plus or minus 3 percentage points with a 95-percent confidence level."
https://nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/poll-majority-americans-want-four-day-work-week-26961
RE: Americans want a four day work week - Syne - Aug 10, 2019
Good find, MR. Now if they only polled those with firsthand experience with it. I would hazard that the 35% against or indifferent might represent those.
Personally, I prefer the good old 8 hours to work, 8 hours to play, and 8 hours to sleep.
RE: Americans want a four day work week - Leigha - Aug 10, 2019
I work from home two days per week, and in an office the other three days, which is a nice benefit. But I wouldn’t mind a four day week. I can see two extra hours per day becoming potentially annoying and tiring, though. Decisions.
RE: Americans want a four day work week - Magical Realist - Aug 10, 2019
https://www.marketwatch.com/story/the-four-day-work-week-just-became-permanent-at-this-company-2018-10-06
RE: Americans want a four day work week - Syne - Aug 10, 2019
(Aug 10, 2019 02:13 AM)Magical Realist Wrote: https://www.marketwatch.com/story/the-four-day-work-week-just-became-permanent-at-this-company-2018-10-06
"trimming their hours from around 40 to 32 per week"
Maybe more productive, but also earning less.