Work four days with five pay, working (in New Zealand)

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Without insulting Nicolas Sarkozy, it is possible to work less to earn more. One New Zealand company experimented with a four-day workweek. For more than three-quarters of employees, this change was accompanied by a better match between private and work life (+24%).

permanent guardian It is a certified company specialized in the management of money, wills and estates. Between March and April 2018, the company’s 240 employees worked four days a week, eight hours a day, with their paychecks continuing for five days.

company founder Andrew BarnesShe had the ambition to give her employees a better quality of life, more time for leisure and family life, with the hope of having a better focus during work days.

Results without appeal

Scientists fromUniversity of Auckland Quantitative and qualitative data were collected before, during and after testing to understand the consequences of this change in frequency on employee health.

In November of the previous year, 54% of employees felt they had a satisfactory work-family balance compared to 78% at the end of the probationary period. Employee stress was reduced by 7% during the experiment, participation and a sense of success at work increased, with personal satisfaction increased (+5%).

Helen Delaney, a researcher at the University of Auckland, believes that the motivation and participation of employees is due to their involvement in decision-making processes. For example, participate in the implementation of the new schedule. “Employees envisioned a number of innovations and initiatives to work more productively and efficiently: from automating manual processes to eliminating the use of the Internet for personal use.‘, she explained.

test conversion

In view of the results, the head of the company decided to propose to the management committee to perpetuate the process: “If you have parents who can spend more time with their children, why is that such a bad thing?Andrew Barnes is convinced that the new model has the potential to profoundly change the company for the better.

«Are you the type who has fewer psychological problems when you have more time to take care of yourself and your interests? Likely! If there are fewer people in the office at the same time, can we create smaller offices?‘, the president insists on guardian.

Even the New Zealand Minister of Labor Ian is not Galloway found results”so interestingHe encourages other companies to try the exercise:I really tend to work with any company that seeks to be more flexible with their employees to improve productivity by working with them to protect them in good conditions».