Recently, there has been an increase in the number of businesses trialling a four-day work week. Some trial programmes have resulted in higher earnings and significant reductions in employee burnout and turnover. Others report that adopting a four-day work week allows them to manage their payroll expenses effectively while boosting employee satisfaction and providing workers with additional disposable income.

When Iceland initiated a four-day work week experiment in 2015, which spanned four years and ultimately set the stage for a widespread reduction in working hours for the majority of its population, the move went largely unnoticed by bigger nations and major corporations. Nonetheless, the disruption caused by the Covid-19 pandemic to conventional work routines has prompted a re-evaluation by some CEOs and policymakers. Companies experimenting with the four-day week concept are adopting varied approaches – some are choosing to condense work into longer days, while others are implementing a straightforward cutback in the total hours worked.

A six-month pilot project in the UK during 2022 revealed promising results, with the 61 participating companies (primarily small businesses) experiencing an average revenue increase of 35% compared to the June-December 2021 period, though the post-Covid economic rebound also contributed. According to a study by the independent research group Autonomy, supported in part by the University of Cambridge, 71% of employees at these companies reported reduced burnout levels. Additionally, the rate of resignations dropped by 57% from the previous year. Following the success of a trial in New Zealand, which saw a decrease in stress and a boost in workplace energy, Unilever expanded its four-day work week trial to its Australian operations. This Australian trial has been extended to continue until the second quarter of 2024.

Whilst the world's largest trial of a four-day work week yielded positive results, with 56 of the 61 participating companies continuing with the four-day work week, it did not have the wider breakthrough impact that some had expected.

Allcap (an engineering and industrial supplies company) found that its workers were having a more intense four-day work week. Without a fifth working day to catch up on work, there was generally more stress during the week in order to have a longer weekend.

For certain companies, especially those with a customer-facing aspect, incorporating sufficient flexibility into the working schedule to accommodate a four-day work week entails additional staffing expenses. This added cost can make the transition to a new work model financially unfeasible.

In 2020, the supermarket chain Morrisons introduced a four-day work week scheme for people working at its Bradford headquarters, reducing their weekly working hours from 40 to 37.5. However, it involved employees working 13 Saturdays a year – one every four weeks. Due to complaints from employees about weekend working, the requirement to work on Saturdays was dropped. That change meant that about 2,000 employees will work 37.5 hours over a four-and-a-half-day week instead.

Joe Ryle, the director of the 4-Day Week Campaign, commented that while Morrisons' trial of a four-day work week was a significant initial move, it falls short of the campaign's ideal of a genuine 32-hour work week without a reduction in pay. The campaign holds that a shorter work week, without any cut in earnings, would yield advantages for employees, businesses, the economy, society and the environment.

At present, while some companies may find value in making the four-day work week a permanent fixture, it may not be a feasible option for all businesses.