Nationwide trial for four-day work week recommended by landmark inquiry

Australians could soon ditch the five-day work week but still get paid their full salary under bold reforms proposed by a landmark inquiry.

Australia has been urged to trial the four-day work week.

Australians could soon be paid their full-time wage to work just four days a week should sweeping proposals from a senate inquiry be adopted.

The landmark report by the select committee on work and care backed a raft of changes, including a year of paid parental leave and the right to disconnect from work outside of hours.

Greens senator Barbara Pocock, who chaired the inquiry, called on the government to seriously consider the “ambitious” reforms to boost the quality of life.

“In our history, Australia led the world in reductions in the working week in the 1850s. We’re at the other end of the spectrum with too many Australians working very long hours,” she told ABC News Breakfast.

The report has recommended a trial of the four-day work week.

“We need to think more seriously about how we deal with a changed workforce.”

The report recommended the Albanese government trial the 100:80:100 model. Workers would continue to be paid a full-time wage and maintain productivity despite working 80 per cent of the week.

“We heard a lot of evidence … of people who are already working a four-day week in workplaces that are trialling a reduction in working hours and getting very positive results,” Senator Pocock said.

“We’re seeing in the evidence improvements in productivity, a lot greater work and family balance, and really good outcomes in the workplace and at home in terms of relationships and putting your life and your job together.”

The pilot would be spread across the workforce and conducted in partnership with an Australian university.

Labor meanwhile has committed to a reform of the paid parental leave scheme, making it easier for new fathers to spend time at home.

And by 2026, Labor is hoping to boost paid parental leave to 26 weeks total, rather than the 20 weeks currently available.

the Greens are pushing for stronger policies, including superannuation payments for the leave and a clear path toward a full 52 weeks off.

“The government-funded leave should be paid at least at the minimum full-time wage, with consideration given to encouraging employers to top up payments to full wage replacement,” the report states.

A review into the idea of the 38-hour work week and whether stronger penalties were required for employers who made staff work long hours should be considered by the Fair Work Commission, the inquiry said.

Senator Barbara Pocock said the pilot programs already in action were showing positive results. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Martin Ollman

Another key recommendation from the report was restricting employers from contacting employees outside of work hours unless it’s an emergency.

“What people are saying is, can we work our working hours and once we’re beyond those, unless it’s absolutely urgent, we should be able to turn the phone off and not be at its beck and call,” Senator Pocock added.

While the report had the broad support of Labor and Coalition senators, additional comments provided by government members noted the reforms might not be possible in the current economic environment.

“This fiscal reality necessarily imposes constraints on social policy,” Labor senators Deborah O‘Neill, Jana Stewart and Linda White said.

“It is now the role of government to consider the report and its recommendations within the context of broader budgetary and legislative constraints.”

Research shows dramatic impact of four-day week

This all comes as recent research has found that staff on a four-day work week are more productive, with companies which took part in the experiment seeing their revenue dramatically increase.

The first large-scale study of its kind, released in December, is the latest in the push to reduce the mandatory five-day working week.

Australia was one of the countries involved in the study, which also included New Zealand, the US, Canada, the UK and Ireland.

Over 10 months, nearly 1000 employees at 33 different companies took part in the trial.

Their hours were cut down by an average of six hours and they worked one less day a week, while still receiving their regular full-time salary.

The report found that revenue rose 8 per cent during the trial, but it was up a whopping 38 per cent from the same period a year earlier.

The idea of a four-day working week is picking up steam.

Employee absenteeism also dropped and 67 per cent of employees said they were less burnt out.

Staff also reported less fatigue, with levels going down from 66 per cent before the trial to 57 per cent after the trial. Insomnia and sleep problems for employees also went down by 8 per cent.

It was such a success, that two-thirds of the firms decided to retain the four-day work week, including the Australian offices of Unilever.

Companies rated the overall experience a nine out of 10, with resignations dropping slightly and the ability to attract new workers also increasing.

The research was co-ordinated by not-for-profit advocacy group 4 Day Week Global in partnership with researchers at Cambridge University, Boston College and Oxford University.

“This is important because the two-day weekend is not working for people,” lead researcher Juliet Schor told Bloomberg.

“In many countries, we have a work week that was enshrined in 1938, and it doesn’t mesh with contemporary life. For the wellbeing of people who have jobs, it’s critical that we address the structure of the work week.”

Other than the US, Australia was the largest participant in the study.