Young employees working regular five-day weeks told TODAY recently that they largely welcome the notion of a shorter work week.
However, given that they already frequently work beyond their official hours to complete their tasks, they dread having to stretch their work days even longer to make up for the lost fifth weekday.
MOM data showed that actual hours worked per week had declined marginally from an average of 44.7 in 2017 to 44.3 in 2022 – but they still remained above the global standard 40-hour week.
A data analyst at a bank here, who wanted to be known only as Mr Goh, noted that dividing 40 hours in a four-day week would end up with an 11-hour work day including lunch.
“For example, 8am to 7pm — that’s a bit extreme for a day of work that is not factoring in commute timings as well,” he said.
One civil servant, who wanted to be known only as Ms Goh, noted how the work of an entity in the public service is usually linked to or to support the function of other government-related organisations.
“These entities may already have fixed operating days, so with the reduction of work days, they might be getting the short end of the stick since your support for them will be reduced,” she said.
While proponents of shorter work hours tout increased productivity due to better worker morale, use of technology and better work planning, some employees told TODAY that the problem is not always about the number of work hours one has to put in per se.
Another employee in the public sector who wanted to be known only as Mr Alif said: “I don’t think (any organisation) can be so efficient as to cut down five days’ worth of work to four days by just removing ‘fluff’.” He was referring to administrative and smaller tasks that are not part of an employee’s core job.
“I think the main issue that we should address, and which I don’t think is brought up enough, isn’t the number of work days, but rather the amount of work Singaporeans have to deal with.”
At public relations company Mad Hat, its employees enjoy a four-day work week on the last week of each month.
However, as with all PR agency firms, there is still an element of extended work hours, which sometimes spill into the designated long weekend, due to client-stipulated deadlines.
Senior account manager Krisha Ramos acknowledged that spillover work is a given in the industry, and it does not diminish the joy she derives from the long weekends.
“In the event that there’s work needed on a Friday, it just means that I can clear that on my time and target without distraction or interruptions (as opposed to having an official workday Friday),” said the 29-year old, who has eight years’ experience in the industry.
The “spontaneous long weekend getaways on a regular basis” and extra time for her to pursue her hobbies have allowed her to achieve better work-life balance, she said.
SOME SUCCESSFUL CASE STUDIES BUT NO GLOBAL NORM
While much of the conversation surrounding a shorter work week and better work-life balance could be traced back to the COVID-19 disruption which began in early 2020, Microsoft Japan was one notable company already experimenting with the four-day work before the pandemic.
It ran a one-month trial by giving its employees long weekends in August 2019 and reported a 40 per cent jump in productivity, despite the cut in work hours from 40 to 32.
Panasonic, another multinational headquartered in workaholic Japan, introduced an optional four-day work week in early 2022.
Elsewhere, 4 Day Work Week Global, a non-profit based in the United Kingdom advocating for the implementation of four-day work weeks, has reported largely positive results from companies participating in trials that it has helped to organise since last year.
In February, the organisation reported 56 of 61 companies in the UK that piloted the shortened work schedule from June to December 2022 decided to continue with the practice, with 18 of the companies making it a permanent policy.
Employees reported improvements in their overall well-being, including mental and physical health. Meanwhile, employers benefited from a decline in worker absenteeism and turnover rates and a stable revenue despite the cut in total work hours.
Such pilots have since been expanded to companies in other countries, with largely positive results.
According to 4 Day Week Global, the participating companies had implemented different methods of working time reduction with one objective in mind: “Meaningful” reduction in work time for employees with no pay cut.
Besides the straightforward long weekend arrangement in some companies, staff at other firms take the additional day off in a staggered manner to ensure the company’s services continue over five weekdays.
Other businesses, such as restaurants, may require their staff to work longer hours for certain periods but compensate for it by giving them shorter working hours during the lull season, resulting in an average 32-hour work week overall.
In Singapore, business, human resource and labour experts told TODAY that it might be challenging to shorten work days in a similar manner here, at least in the near future.