Campaigners will call for the introduction of government policies that would enable the UK to transition to a four-day working week at a cross-party event on Tuesday.
The 4 Day Week Campaign argues that the British public overwhelmingly wants reduced working hours, with more than two-thirds consistently supporting the move.
Its recommendations are set out in a Mini-Manifesto to be unveiled online, encouraging politicians to commit ahead of the next general election to implementing a four-day, 32-hour working week with no loss of pay for employees.
The event will include speakers from Labour, the Scottish National Party, the Conservatives, the Liberal Democrats, the Green Party and Plaid Cymru.
Labour has previously pledged support for a four-day working week, and senior members of the shadow cabinet have recently spoken out in favour of the initiative, including Deputy Leader Angela Rayner, Shadow Climate Change and Net Zero Secretary Ed Miliband and Shadow Attorney General Emily Thornberry.
The suggested policies published in the Mini-Manifesto – a joint initiative with the New Economics Foundation and the think tanks Autonomy and Common Wealth – will be the cornerstone of the 4 Day Week Campaign's advocacy leading up to the election in 2024.
Key recommendations are:
- Lowering the maximum working week from 48 hours to 32 hours by the year 2030.
- Revising official flexible working guidelines to allow workers the right to request a four-day, 32-hour work week without wage deductions.
- Setting up a £100 million ($125.78 million) fund to facilitate private-sector companies' transition to a four-day, 32-hour work week.
- Launching a fully funded public sector pilot for the four-day work week.
- Establishing a Working Time Council comprised of trade unions, industry leaders and business leaders to co-ordinate policy and implementation of the shorter work week.
Increased popularity for the concept was seen in February when the world's largest pilot trial of a four-day working week, involving 61 companies and nearly 3,000 employees in the UK ended with nearly all participating companies continuing with the shorter hours without cutting pay.
Employers and employees favour change
The 4 Day Week Campaign's Mini-Manifesto highlights the concerning reality of British workers logging some of the longest full-time hours in Europe, yet the UK remains one of the least productive economies.
The document makes the case that a shorter work week could be mutually beneficial for employees and employers, contributing to improved well-being and productivity.
The Mini-Manifesto also posits that a four-day working week has broader societal benefits. It could potentially reduce the UK’s carbon footprint by up to 127 million tonnes annually, and may also help close the gender pay gap.
Public support for this change is considerable.
Polls conducted by the market research agency Survation indicated that voters in so-called “red wall” seats would be more likely to back a party that commits to implementing a four-day, 32-hour working week without any wage cuts.
“Red wall” is a term used in British politics to describe constituencies in the Midlands and Northern England which historically supported the Labour Party. At the 2019 general election, many of these constituencies switched to the Conservatives, with the media describing the red wall as having “turned blue”.
Some 66 per cent of these voters, including 75 per cent of women, said they supported the four-day week, while 44 per cent said they would be more likely to vote Conservative, even among 40 per cent of Labour voters, if the party committed to such a policy.
In a statement, the 4 Day Week Campaign's director Joe Ryle said Labour MPs would call on their party leader to back a shorter week at the launch event today.
"Keir Starmer has rightly talked up the importance of family life in Britain but he should back working families by giving them a four-day working week," Mr Ryle said.
“Too many parents in Britain are working long hours, often on low pay, and they deserve a break. In burnout Britain, a four-day week with no loss of pay would give parents more time to spend together with their family.”
Supporting the cause, Peter Dowd, Labour MP for Bootle, commented: “With the roll-out of artificial intelligence on the horizon, a shorter working week is looking more and more inevitable.
“Greater productivity in the economy as a result of new technology must be passed back to workers in more free leisure time. A four-day week is the future of work and I urge my party to back these policies.”
Clive Lewis, Labour MP for Norwich South, argued that a four-day working week was urgently needed to address the widespread issues of overwork, burnout and poor mental health.
“Elections are often won by parties of the centre-left when they paint a vivid image of a brighter future,” Mr Lewis said.
“A four-day week, now more likely than ever, is a crucial part of this composition. I therefore urge Keir Starmer to back this policy to give people some hope and reassurance that the future will be better under a Labour government.”
