Someone with a child under two would save £1,440 on childcare and £340 on commuting in an average year if they didn’t have to travel to work one day a week, the left-wing thinktank Autonomy has calculated. Activists and economists who favor a four-day week tend to focus on the benefits for workers in the form of increased leisure time and potential productivity improvements that allow companies to get the same amount of work done in less time. Autonomy said the policy would also help workers cope with the increased cost of living, with the UK in the midst of a period of high inflation, particularly in energy bills. The commuting cost calculation is based on an average annual bill of around £1,700, derived from a 2019 survey of 2,000 full-time, part-time and self-employed people from across the UK. The average annual childcare cost estimate was £7,200 for a family with one child, according to 2021 figures from the Trades Union – although in many parts of the country working parents spend significantly more. The analysis comes after a pioneering UK pilot of a four-day week passed the halfway mark. 73 companies employing about 3,300 workers have signed up for the six-month trial period, which began in June and will end in November. The test is run by the 4 Day Week campaign, which is directly supported by Autonomy. The trial is believed to be the largest project of its kind in the world. Since the start of the trial, the first local authority in the UK has committed to trialling a four-day week. Office staff at South Cambridgeshire District Council will launch the new pattern in January, with possible further trials involving litter collectors afterwards. Joe Ryle, director of the 4 Day Week campaign, said the anecdotal response so far had been overwhelmingly positive and the change could help improve the cost of living crisis. “There have definitely been difficulties for some companies,” he said. “But it looks like the vast majority will stick with it permanently.” Subscribe to Business Today Get ready for the business day – we’ll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain information about charities, online advertising and content sponsored by external parties. For more information, see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and Google’s Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Any assessment of potential economic benefits to a four-day week should also be weighed against the costs of leisure activities on the extra day off, as well as costs such as home heating bills if workers and children stay at home. Academics hope to analyze the trial to understand the positive and negative effects of working one less day. Will Stronge, director of research at Autonomy, said: “The benefits of a four-day week for worker wellbeing and boosting productivity are well known, but the impact it could have on the cost of living has so far been overlooked. “A four-day week without loss of pay could play a critical role in supporting workers to get by in the coming years.”
