Labour’s 4-day working week proposal, and some thoughts for UK businesses

Following on from its ‘Make Work Pay’ announcement at the end of May, the Labour government has hinted that it may be about to give employees the right to request a 4-day working week in the UK. The plan, however, comes with a slight catch (for employees at least), insomuch as they would still need to work their current contracted hours. So, we’re looking at the option to undertake longer working days, with a day off in the standard working week.

In this article we’ll take a look at Labour’s 4-day work week proposal, what’s been said by the government so far, along with some thoughts on what this could all mean for small businesses.

What’s been said on a 4-day working week in the UK so far

After a series of highly successful trials of a 4-day working week in the UK, this emerging flexible working trend is now being talked about at the highest levels, with plans for it to become a requestable right. The new Labour government’s plans on worker legislation so far have taken in talk of abolishing zero-hours contracts, banning fire & rehire as well as delivering a genuine living wage. Much of the legislation is a continuation of emerging talk from the last Conservative government, however it’s now looking a lot closer to coming to fruition.

Education minister Jacqui Smith has stated that the government thinks flexible working is good for productivity, including a 4-day week. She feels that it could help workers with children pay less for childcare, spend more time with family, and encourage more people into the workplace.

The government said that it would roll out this raft of new worker legislation in its first 100 days in office (which, at the time of writing, is very close to being up), however nothing concrete has gotten going just yet. We’d expect several rounds of consultation with businesses and trade unions, not to mention the usual Commons voting processes, before Labour’s 4-day working week proposal passes into UK legislation.

Some thoughts on what this could mean for small businesses

It’s important to note the government has said they have “no plans” to impose a 4-day work week on employers or employees. They have said that any changes to employment legislation will be fully consulted on, working in partnership with businesses.

The previous government passed a new flexible working law (after concerted efforts from Labour) which means that employees are now entitled to request flexible working arrangements from day one of their employment.

These can include, as well as things like part-time or flexi-time requests, requests to work compressed hours. What this potential latest announcement would do is enshrine UK employees’ rights to request a 4-day working week specifically in law, meaning that businesses would be encouraged to accept a request (at the moment they are not required to do so).

So what small businesses can expect is a further shift in the balance of power towards the employee in terms of flexible working, and this represents a great opportunity to align with Gen-Z on what they truly want from work. With the demand for full flexibility so high, especially among younger workers, employers who are quick to adapt to this new UK 4-day work week mindset will set themselves apart, boost recruitment and retention efforts and drive up engagement.

Some other opportunities (and challenges) that a move to this proposed iteration of a 4-day working week in the UK might present to businesses are:

• Opportunity: additional exposure on specialised 4-day work week recruitment sites;

• Challenge: fulfilling 5-day hours in a 4-day week could actually negatively impact engagement, and lead to burnout.

We here at PayFit will be keeping a close eye on developments, so stay close to both our blog and socials for updates on what is sure to be a major development in employment law and workers’ rights.