Work Less, Relax More

Millennials are ready for a four-day week. The younger generation wants to work fewer hours

- ALISS HIGHAM

THE CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC UPENDED office traditions around the world, making working from home the new normal and Zoom meetings the favored way to catch up with colleagues and clients. But millennials, often bashed by their elders as being work-shy, are keen for more reforms to the work-life balance, with polling showing the generation is considerably in favor of adopting a four-day working week.

This concept is simple: employees work a day less than the standard five, which works out as 32 work hours instead of 40. Workers still have to complete the same amount of work in 80 percent of the time, while in many cases still taking home their full compensation package. Numerous major companies have introduced a reduced week either every week or just some weeks, including Kickstarter, Bolt and Dolby.

The idea is certainly gaining momentum. Bernie Sanders, chair of the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, has pushed for four-day weeks in Congress. "The sad reality is, Americans now work more hours than the people of most other wealthy nations. And we're going to talk about what that means to the lives of ordinary people," he told lawmakers at a health committee hearing in March.

"In 2022, employees in the U.S., and I hope people hear this, logged 204 more hours a year than employees in Japan, and they're hardworking people in Japan; 279 more hours than workers in the United Kingdom; and 470 more hours than workers in Germany." Newsweek contacted Sanders via email for comment and clarification on these figures.

Outside of the Capitol, numerous companies and nonprofits dedicated to revolutionizing the way we work are becoming more and more notable.

Several trials have been run in the U.S., U.K. and Europe to explore the potential benefits of relaxing more and working less. And it seems the younger generations are keen to capitalize on this growing trend.