These 4 Companies Have Switched to the Four-Day Workweek

Last Thursday, thousands of auto workers at a GM plant in Missouri, a Stellantis plant (which makes Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, and Ram vehicles) in Ohio, and a Ford plant in Michigan walked off the job to start picketing and stop production. 

Today, the United Auto Workers strike carries on into its fifth day. 

The union is pushing for a 40 percent wage increase over four years, improved benefits for retirement, and—most notably—shorter work hours (among other demands). 

According to the UAW, those shorter work hours would look like a 32-hour work week with 40 hours of pay, and overtime for anything beyond those 32 hours. 

In other words, the UAW wants a four-day workweek––a topic we covered earlier this year after completing a long-awaited, large-scale four-day workweek pilot.  

Proven Benefits of a Four-Day Workweek

The trial, conducted by the non-profit organization, 4 Day Week Global, and led by Boston College, the University of Cambridge, and British-based research institution Autonomy, included 60-plus companies from marketing agencies to hospitality organizations to financial firms in the U.S. and the U.K. 

Among nearly 3,000 employees participating in the study, 71% reported reduced burnout levels and other physical health and well-being improvements. Employees in the pilot were also able to spend more time with their families, pursue hobbies, and take better care of themselves and loved ones—all key freedoms of a healthy worker. 

Participating employers reported boosted productivity and output, a slight increase in revenue, and a 57% drop in employee turnover during the trial. After the six months were up, 92% of participating employers permanently chose to keep the four-day workweek. 

Ultimately, the results confirm a hypothesis that has been growing in popularity for quite some time: a truncated workweek is better for both employees and employers. 

But, don’t take our word for it––listen to our podcast with the man who wrote the book on it.

The Four-Day Workweek and the Auto Industry  

The concept of the four-day workweek is often associated with modern tech startups that offer cushy benefits to their employees to attract top talent, but interestingly, the four-day workweek (with no pay cut) has been on the docket for autoworkers for nearly a century.

The first major push for a 30-hour week in the industry began in the early 1930s, even before the 40-hour workweek was established in the Fair Labor Standards Act, and came up again as a demand in the 40s and in the 70s. 

Consequently, the UAW is, in many ways, responsible for pushing the idea of the four-day workweek into the mainstream, and is often cited as the key reason so many employees have access to better work-life balance today. 

In fact, auto workers have long been on the front lines of labor negotiations and part of cutting-edge labor partnerships that have, with a ripple effect, improved wages and working conditions for Americans across the country and across different industries. 

If the UAW can get the big three automakers to agree to a shortened workweek, it’s sure to cause another copycat effect throughout the country.

Companies With a Four-Day Workweek Today

But some employers have moved ahead of the curve and adopted the four-day workweek before the auto industry agrees to it. Keep reading to find out who they are (hint: they’re not all tech startups!) and how they’ve benefitted from this mold-breaking, disruptive labor practice to determine if it’s right for you. 

Kickstarter

Kickstarter, a popular crowdfunding platform, implemented the four-day workweek to boost creativity and productivity after seeing success as a trial participant in the  4 Day Week Global study mentioned above. 

Twelve months after implementing the four-day workweek, the company reported dramatic changes in key organizational metrics, notably in employee retention and engagement. 

“We’ve seen very few employees choose to depart the company since the implementation of the four-day week. Employees now see themselves working at Kickstarter in 2 years nearly twice the rate as before the pilot,” said chief strategy officer, Jon Leland.

Relatedly, employee engagement is up by 50% at Kickstarter during a time when American workers are less engaged in their work than ever before. 

ThredUP

ThredUP, an online thrift store and clothing consignment company, adopted a four-day workweek in 2021 to promote employee well-being and gender equity in the workplace. 

In an employee survey conducted one year after implementation, 93% of respondents agreed that the four-day workweek improved their productivity. 

Additionally, voluntary turnover among corporate staffers decreased by 55% compared with 2019, and more than half of new hires agreed that the four-day workweek tipped the scale in their decision to join the company. 

Ultimately, it’s been good for their bottom line––but that’s not the only thing it’s been good for. 

“It’s also been beneficial from a gender-equity perspective,” said Natalie Breece, the chief people and diversity officer at ThredUp. “We’re leveling the playing field for moms and dads, which means they get to spend more time with their kids.”

Not only do parents get more time with their children with ThredUP’s four-day workweek, but they also don’t have to spend as much money on childcare––further improving the well-being of employees with kids. 

The National Parks Conservation Association 

The National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA), a non-profit organization that protects and enhances America’s National Park System, adopted a four-day workweek in 2022 to support its three key organizational values: to create a welcoming workplace that strives to reflect the diversity of our country, to maintain equitable and compassionate labor practices, and to include different perspectives at every level meaningfully. 

As a result of these values, and as a result of implementing the four-day workweek, NPCA received two major awards for excellence in culture: a USA Top Workplace award in 2023 from Energage and a Culture Excellence Award recognizing purpose and value, work-life flexibility, compensation & benefits, innovation, and leadership. 

The real proof of the success of the NPCA’s four-day workweek program, however, can be found in their retention numbers: on average, NPCA staff stay at the organization for ten years! 

Panasonic North America

Panasonic introduced an abbreviated workweek in January 2022, becoming the largest global company to introduce a four-day workweek. 

While their model differs slightly from other four-day week models (they offer an optional three-day weekend for employees rather than a mandated one), the benefits have been similar to those of other early-adopters: increased productivity, improved gender equity, fewer employee sick days, heightened morale, lower operational costs, and more. 

Looking Ahead: Permanent Long Weekends? 

The four-day workweek is more than just a trend; it’s a movement gaining traction across various industries due to the positive results of many real-life experiments that show it’s possible to maintain productivity while enhancing employee well-being. 

As more positive data comes out about the practice and more influential organizations and industries begin to adopt it, like the UAW and the auto industry, the four-day workweek is likely to become the new norm in employment rather than the exception. For more insights into the future of the four-day workweek, listen to this episode of America Back to Work: Expert Interview Series with Alex Soojung-Kim Pang, author of Shorter: Work Better, Smarter and Less–Here’s How.