Researchers quantify benefits of four-day work week

The Utah state government’s August 4 implementation of a four-day work week could result in higher job satisfaction and lower levels of work-family conflict, according to a new Brigham Young University study. Those benefits translate into higher productivity, researchers say.

Rex Facer and Lori Wadsworth of BYU’s Romney Institute of Public Management examined the outcome of a Utah city’s transition to a schedule in which most employees worked four 10-hour days a week. Their paper appears in the June issue of Review of Public Personnel Administration.

The research was conducted among Spanish Fork City employees, many of whom have four day work weeks. Salt Lake, West Valley, Provo, West Jordan and Draper are among other Utah cities which offer similar programs.

According to Facer, Utah cities embraced the new schedule to both save money on utilities and also to give citizens a wider range of times to access city hall. Now they are also reaping the morale and retention benefits among employees who save on fuel costs by commuting one fewer day each week.

BYU researchers found that even though four-day work week employees work the same number of hours per week as their traditional work-week counterparts, they reported being more satisfied with their jobs, compensation and benefits, and were less likely to look for employment elsewhere in the next year.

“I am hopeful that the state’s move to a four-day work week will be a positive one,” said Wadsworth. “There are going to be very real benefits for employees, specifically decreased gas cost, decreased commute time (both because they only have to commute four days, but also because they’ll be commuting during off-peak times, so the commute could potentially be shorter each day), and hopefully, improved work-life balance.”

Among the most significant findings was the four day work week’s connection to conflicts between work and home. The four-day work week employees were less likely to report that they come home too tired, that work takes away from personal interest, and that work takes time they would like to spend with family. Other studies have linked work-home conflict with low job performance and lessened productivity.

“The challenges of balancing work and home lives have become much more complex,” Facer said. “Finding ways to better manage work-family conflict is important in building stronger organizations and satisfied employee bases.”
Other findings in the study show:

• More than 60 percent of four day work week employees reported higher productivity as a result of the 4/10 schedule.
• More than 60 percent of employees reported agreement that citizen access has improved as a result of the four-day work week.

In 2004, Spanish Fork joined the ranks of other Utah cities that offer alternative scheduling to their employees. Unpublished findings from the researchers indicate that citizens are split evenly among support, neutrality and opposition to the four day work week schedule. The program has continued to evolve since its inception, in an effort to balance the complex and sometimes competing expectations of citizens. Within the last year, the city has reinstated Friday hours for some services.

Nine of Utah’s 15 largest cities offer some form of alternative work schedules to their employees, a trend that is increasingly prevalent across the county. Of these cities, the four-day work week schedule is the most common program followed by a schedule that offers every other Friday off with employees making up hours in between.

Facer adds that while the research shows some of the positive effects of alternative schedules, each city needs to evaluate its citizens, workforce and services carefully before and after adoption.

“Policies may need to be adapted to meet local needs,” he said. “Each city has to adapt to balance the very positive feelings the employees have about alternative schedules with the needs of the members of the community.”

To aid in this process, Facer and Wadsworth are currently conducting a nation-wide study involving about 150 municipal human resources directors aimed at learning more about alternative work schedules and their effects in communities.