Who are the fun police that decided we had to cram at least 40 hours of work into five days? It can be exhausting, it can be stressful and sometimes two days is just not enough time for activities.
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No wonder most people on Instagram upload your standard ‘TGIF’ or ‘FRIYAY’ or ‘did someone say Friday?’ pictures week in, week out. If you’re a full-time worker, you know the bliss of making it to Friday, the elation knowing you’ve got two days of rest from work.
So, what if I told you that you only had to work four of those five days of work? What if you had your weekend and then an EXTRA day up your sleeve for you to partake in your idea of a leisurely activity? Or an extra day to spend with your family? Or an extra day to avoid your family and stay inside your house?
If you worked for New Zealand-based company, Perpetual Guardian, that’s exactly what you’d be getting – a four-day work week.
The idea is that employees will take an extra day off, every week, and come back to work more refreshed and energised (Perpetual Guardian, please consider this my application because that sounds great).
They tested it back in March for six weeks with the experiment proving successful; and their measurement of success? They had happier and more satisfied employees – tick and tick.
Perpetual Guardian founder Andrew Barnes said: “For us, this is about our company getting improved productivity from greater workplace efficiencies … there’s no downside for us.”
The downside for employees though? They can’t take their day off on a Monday or Friday.
At first, this disappointed me because I was dreaming about mini-breaks and long weekends away or just the thought of having three full days in a row off every week to catch up on sleep.
But, I realised, having a day off during the week would be extremely handy. For people who work full-time, it’s difficult to co-ordinate your dentist appointments, bank visits, getting your car serviced, because most of these places also work within the confines of your 9-5.
I know some people that’ll let these errands accumulate and then take an annual leave day just to get them done.
Having a day off every week for life admin suddenly makes life a helluva lot easier. And I only have to take care of me. Factor in a couple of kids and that day off is a god-send.
However, maybe it’s a just a novelty. Once we get used to a four-day work week, maybe we’d start demanding three day work weeks until we don’t have to work at all.
My burning question is – am I going to have to get five day’s worth of work done in four days? Will I still have time to check my phone? Chat to my work bestie? Heat my lunch up?
Or will I be chained to the desk guzzling instant coffee, frantically trying to plough through emails, call clients and update my spreadsheets? That seems more stressful to me than working five days in a row, TBH.
Will I be chained to the desk guzzling instant coffee, frantically trying to plough through emails, call clients and update my spreadsheets? That seems more stressful to me than working five days in a row.
More than 20 per cent of Australian workers spend 50 hours or more a week at work and 60 per cent don’t even take regular holidays.
Working too much isn’t a good time for anyone, including yourself and the people around you (I get cranky when I’ve been working too much).
And working too much or being stressed out from work can be a serious detriment to our health, putting us at risk of serious physical ailments down the track.
Finding a work/life balance can be tricky and it’s elusive at best, especially if you’re ambitious. So, what does your idea of work/life balance look like?
Taking a mid-morning break every now and then to look at your phone? Bailing early on a Friday arvo? Or maybe hit up Perpetual Guardian for a four-day work week.
I love days off, just as much as the next person. And they’re sacred because they only happen a few times a year so you (try) to make the most of them.
Every business, workplace and individual are different – the important part is that your boss/manager/company actually gives a stuff about you.
Riley-Rose Harper can be heard on Hit 104.9 from 6-9am on weekdays.