週４日労働制で「生産性向上」　英実証実験

【ロンドンＡＦＰ＝時事】週４日労働制（週休３日制）は、大半の従業員と企業にとって週５日労働制（週休２日制）より生産性が高いとする英国の実証実験の最終報告が２２日に公表された。（写真は資料）
　実験は、非営利団体（ＮＰＯ）「４デー・ウイーク・グローバル」がシンクタンク「オートノミー」、英ケンブリッジ大学と米ボストン・カレッジと共同で実施。
　世界最大級とされる実証実験には、英国内の６０以上の企業が昨年６月から半年間参加し、３０００人近い従業員に週５日労働制と同額の給与が支払われた。
　労働時間を減らした結果、生産性は低下せず、収益は実験期間中に平均で１．４％、平年同期と比べても平均３５％増加していた。
　さらに雇用が増加し、欠勤は減少。離職者も急減していた。
　参加企業の９０％以上は週４日労働制を継続する、もしくは今後導入すると回答。継続しないと答えた企業はわずか４％だった。
　研究チームは、従業員の健康と幸福度が全体的に改善され、心身の健康や運動時間、自身の生活と仕事への満足度が「著しく」向上したと指摘。ストレス、燃え尽き症候群、疲労度も低下し、睡眠不足を訴える割合も減少したとしている。
　研究を主導したボストン・カレッジのジュリエット・ショアー教授は週４日労働制について、「職場の規模は違っても、ほぼ同じ結果が出ており、さまざまな組織に有効だ」と述べている。【翻訳編集ＡＦＰＢＢＮｅｗｓ】
〔ＡＦＰ＝時事〕（2023/02/22-20:38）

A four-day working week is more productive for most staff and companies than the traditional five days, one of the biggest trials of its kind conducted in the UK reported on Tuesday.
Over 60 firms in Britain took part in the six-month experiment allowing almost 3,000 employees to work one day less per week while retaining the same salary.
Conducted between last June and December, it was organised by non-profit group 4 Day Week Global alongside the think tank Autonomy, the University of Cambridge and Boston College in the United States.
It has been described as the world's biggest trial of a four-day working week.
The study found more than nine out of ten firms will continue with the shortened working week or plan to do so, organisers said in a statement.
Just four percent will not extend it.
Results are largely steady across workplaces of varying sizes, demonstrating this is an innovation which works for many types of organisations, said lead researcher and Boston College professor Juliet Schor.
Productivity did not suffer from the lighter working weeks, with company revenue rising 1.4 percent on average over the trial.
Revenue jumped 35 percent on average, when compared with similar periods from previous years.
The study also found that hiring increased and absenteeism dropped -- while the number of staff leaving fell sharply during the trial.
In addition, researchers concluded that the overall health and well-being of employees had improved.
Significant increases were observed in physical and mental health, time spent exercising, and overall life and job satisfaction.
Rates of stress, burnout and fatigue all fell, while problems with sleep declined, according to the statement.
- 'Really positive' -
In terms of employees, their mental health improved, they got better sleep, they got less burnt out, Cambridge University's Professor Brendan Burchell told AFP.
But at the same time, the companies reported that if there were changes in their profits or their performance, if anything they were more likely to go up rather than down.
And we got lots of very happy people -- people really enjoyed it; they found it such a reward to have three day weekends instead of two day weekends.
UK environmental consultancy Tyler Grange was among 18 firms to adopt permanently the four-day week after taking part.
My experience has only been really, really positive -- you can see it in people day-to-day at work, that they're more energized at work, Tyler Grange client director Nathan Jenkinson told AFP.
Employees come into work at the start of the week on a Monday, having had three days rest, and they're feeling much more positive about work and got a lot more energy.
Tyler Grange reported that turnover increased slightly despite the reduced hours.
In recent years, studies into the four-day working week have spread globally as employers explore post-pandemic flexibility, including the concept of a hybrid workplace that enables more working from home.
Experiments on the shortened week have taken place across Europe, the United States and Canada, as well as in Australia and New Zealand.
However, asked if the UK government might adopt the trial as national policy, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's spokesman sounded a cautious note, saying there were no plans for that.