A 4-day workweek may find global acceptance but face roadblocks in India

Some Indian employees would prefer a 4-day workweek, but not everyone buys the idea, says a recent study

A recent study, the first in a series coordinated by the New Zealand-based non-profit advocacy group 4 Day Week Global, has come to a close with all 33 participating companies opting for a 4-day workweek. The data for the study were collected from businesses and organisations in the US, Ireland, and Australia, tracking 969 employees over ten months as they reduced their workweeks by an average of six hours with no change in pay.

"We communicated our inclination for a 4-day week of work to our management last month, but are yet to hear back from them," said Gagandeep Singh, who works at a Gurgaon-based B2B fabric and tailoring start-up. Singh is only one of the increasing number of employees in India who believe a 4-day workweek will bring them more efficiency and a greater work-life balance.

The data released last week in the 4 Day Week Global survey show the organisations involved registered gains in revenue and employee productivity, as well as drops in absenteeism and turnover. Workers on a four-day schedule also were more inclined to work from the office than home.

Dozens of indicators, ranging from productivity to well-being to fatigue, all improved as the companies transitioned. Revenue rose nearly 8 per cent during the trial and was up 38 per cent from a year earlier, indicating healthy growth through the transition.

Srinivasan Ramesh (name changed), the HR manager at a Bengaluru-based tech firm, confirms that the results of their company's internal survey were in line with these findings. "We had briefly resorted to a 4-day week during the second wave of the pandemic, in the first few months of 2021. Once we came back to working full-time in person this year, we asked our employees to take a survey. Most reported they could focus on their work better and preferred to go back to the model, even when working from the office," Ramesh notes. 

He also points to the benefits for the organisation. "A shorter workweek invariably minimises operational and other costs. Large percentages of variable overhead costs, including energy consumption, are eliminated. Our surveys also indicated that shifting to this model will also help in employee retention." Many of the respondents in Ramesh's company indicated that improving their work-life balance will improve their productivity and motivate them not to switch jobs.

According to 4 Day Week Global data, 67 per cent of employees from those surveyed reported being less burned out. Their exercise time increased by roughly 23 minutes each week thanks to the extra day off, and their sleep issues decreased by 8 per cent.

However, not everyone is comfortable with a shorter workweek in India. According to the new labour codes, organisations must cap the total number of working hours to 48 in a week. This means that for a 4-day week, the total hours in a day can be pegged up to as many as 12. As many as six out of ten Indian employees prefer flexibility over a four-day workweek, according to a survey conducted earlier this year by the American experience management company Qualtrics.

Sumit Kumar, Chief Business Officer at Teamlease, says, "While shorter weeks would always be appreciated  they would result in extended working hours and squeezing of work which could take a physical and psychological toll on an individual. Also in the absence of universal implementation of a shorter week the work load could continue on extended weekends due to external business work who may be running as usual on those days."

Goutami Singh, who works for a Noida-based start-up that determines the market evaluation of art and sculptures, believes that with the rise in popularity of hybrid and work-from-home modes in India, the boundaries between one's work hours and off hours are rapidly thinning. "A shorter workweek will give us reduced face time with our clients and lesser time for collaboration within the designated work hours. This will invariably cause the workload to spill into our off-days — a practice already in play thanks to the wide adaptation of WFH and virtual workspaces." She says, even now, many in her office work the equivalent of six days in a five-day workweek.

Another employee working at a senior post in an MNC based in New Town, Kolkata, echoes the concern pointing at the reduced time for training sessions, workshops, and shortening deadlines.

"Working with multinational clients, if you are trying to meet 5 days worth of client requests, a four-day workweek in those circumstances may actually increase stress. Also, employees will have one fewer day to meet their deadlines, and this will invariably lead to increased workload and burnout."

Even as employees like Singh push for shorter weeks in their firms, he says the model won't work across sectors.

"Commercial sectors like banking, tech, and management might usher in the practice, but how do you adopt this to manufacturing, agriculture, and healthcare?" He also points out that for start-ups, the adoption might come easier for Unicorns, but SMBs will find it more difficult to transition.