Four-day weeks are all the rage. But can they work?

The ambition to codify new working norms into a single system like a 20% reduction in working hours for 100% of pay is laudable, but is not workable. The 'F' should be for flexibility, not four days

Research in the UK showed most people prefer flexible hours over the rigidity of a four-day week. Pic: Larry Cummins

The business world badly wants a silver bullet to solve the existential crisis engulfing white-collar work as productivity falls.

A working assumption is that the silver bullet in question is the four-day week. It follows much fanfare about the success of trials around the world, and now a bill in the US that would amend the definition of the workweek in US federal law has been relaunched by Democrat Congressman Mark Takano.