4-Day Work Week

As the Executive Director of my company I have been bouncing around an idea with my employees - a 4-day work week.

Some time ago when I first suggested this while hanging out in the break room one employee said, "That would be cool!" I then pointed out it would mean we would have to work ten hours a day instead of eight. This of course garnered the response, "That would suck!" That was our last conversation on that issue for sometime.

Recently, I saw Utah was shifting its state workers to a 4-day work week, and it got me to thinking about this idea again. Imagine the benefits:

- The fuel we would save by having to fight the traffic one less day a week would be enormous. That's around 50 days a year you would take cars off the streets. This would have a major impact on oil demands.

- Gas emissions and greenhouse impact would be reduced. Memphis is already under the gun with our high level of pollution. This might be an effective way of showing our commitment to reducing those emissions.

- Happier employees. I strongly believe that Americans are disorganized, workaholics. Is your home a mess? Should we call your car garage a trash garage? Do you have rooms in your house you dare not venture in? Imagine with an extra day you would have the time to clean those areas.

- You would expose commuters to less pollution, hence healthier citizens.

- It would motivate you to take more mini-vacations. I don’t know about you but I have so much vacation time saved up I could take a month off and still have extra days left. With a three day weekend I could take Monday off and have a four day jaunt.

- With fewer cars on the highways we would reduce maintenance cost on our roads.

- Now I don’t have any numbers to back this up but it would make sense that we would see less car accidents. Fewer accidents mean a reduction in hospital expenses.

- I feel overall productivity would increase. People would feel better. There would be less stress.

If the City of Memphis government, one of the largest employers of citizens in the City, would embrace this idea I think it would motivate businesses to look at how their employees work. In fact, as I peruse our company calendar I noticed that much of our Fridays are taken up with activities we perform in partnership with the city government.

So, 4-day weekends; what do you think?

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Sign me up right NOW!!! This is what we should have done a long time ago.

Anonymous said...

Mr. Milton this would be a good idea because it would have businesses open later so people getting off work could still make it to the one of these goverment service agencies.

Anonymous said...

It sounds good but I'm with your employee, I can't do 10 hour days. There is no way I can do that. Before the Unions put pressure on companies and government to reduce the amount of hours and days an employee is required to do people talked about how more productive they would be. Put me down for any bet you like, with in a few years of going to four day weeks people will settle back to their same rut as before.

Anonymous said...

Forget four day week, how about three day week. Now you're talking.

Anonymous said...

I vote YES. You waste a couple of hours just getting up, getting ready for work, driving to and from work and then just trying to wind down from work.

Your idea Reginald where you would take monday off and have an extended weekend is a good idea. Because that is a problem with me. There must be 20 day of paid vacation that I've accumulated over the years. Adding one day to a two day weekend just doesn't do it, because you will waste one day getting to your site and a day coming back. That leaves you only one day of rest. With a three day weekend you would have two days.

Now just let me know where to sign up!

Anonymous said...

Would babysitters and daycare centers be able to keep to a four day week? Someone has to take care of the children and the elderly who are dropped off at day centers.

If EVERYONE is on a four day work week, would we be able to get Drs. appointments,hair appointments,car maintenance scheduled?

Anonymous said...

The July 22, 2008 1:19 PM said basically what if everybody did this. First not everybody going to do everything on anything and since it works with five days for people to get to doctors/babysitters/care for the elderly why wouldn't it work for four days? Seem like a good idea to me.