Four-day workweek trialled in Australia and New Zealand
- Claire Lee
About 20 companies in Australia and New Zealand, including finance company More Than Mortgages, The Walk, and Momentum Mental Health, are adopting the four-day workweek as part of a global pilot conducted by not-for-profit advocacy group, 4 Day Week Global (4DWG).
According to co-founders Andrew Barnes and Charlotte Lockhart, 4WDG was established to provide a platform for those interested in taking part in a four-day workweek to boost a better work-life balance.
“It’s a better work-life balance, it addresses issues around the fact that one in four or five workers at any point in time have a stress or mental health issue,” said Barnes, who is also CEO of Perpetual Guardian CEO.
“It addresses issues around gender pay, it takes cars off the road, it has environmental benefits, and all of those things flow as a consequence,” he added.
The 4DWG trial will be monitored by researchers at the University of Sydney, the University of Queensland, and Boston College. The pilot is also being trialled by some 70 organisations in the UK, and another 38 organisations in North America.
READ: More companies adopt four-day workweek in Japan
In Japan, companies such as Panasonic, Hitachi, Mizuho Financial Group and Fast Retailing have all taken steps to test the four-day workweek, as organisations continue to rethink the way they work.
