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Does the five-day week need a makeover?

Is the century-old, five-day, 40-hour work week pioneered by Ford outdated and due for a makeover?

14 Feb 2024

Catherine Ngo

Content writer, presenter and podcaster

The traditional industrial-age work model of a five-day, 40-hour work week, pioneered by Ford a century ago, has undergone significant transformation in recent times. Given the evolving nature of work, is this model outdated and in need of a makeover?

At the recent AFR Workplace Summit, the topic of workplace models and office mandates was a contentious topic and subject to a heated debate.

One of the speakers, Kylie Bishop, head of HR at Medibank shared the “positive results” so far on their four-day workweek trial with 250 employees while maintaining the same productivity levels. Launched late last year, this experiment, dubbed “The Gift,” utilises a 100:80:100 model (100% salary, 80% hours, 100% productivity), enabling staff to retain their full pay while working fewer hours, with the expectation of maintaining their usual productivity levels.

The initiative aims to explore the potential for increased workplace efficiency and employee satisfaction by providing extra personal time in exchange for eliminating fewer valuable tasks.

The trial participants’ positive feedback reflects Medibank’s successful shift to a new work structure. Medibank employees reported a marked improvement in their ability to manage their time, which led to increased productivity and better work-life balance.

Benefits of ‘The Gift’

Ms Bishop openly shared that Medibank attributes its achievements to several practical strategies. These include reducing unnecessary meetings, streamlining communication channels, and using technology to automate routine tasks. This approach enables employees to focus on high-value activities that directly benefit customers. Frontline teams were given responsibility for their teams and scheduling.

Teams had started by reducing the number of meetings and addressing ways of working that suited the team. It meant more autonomy and empowerment of teams. As a result, self-reported stress levels were reduced across all 250 workers.

Ms Bishop states that it’s still early in the experiment and the company will get its first data validation at the 12-week mark of the trial.

It’s not one size fits all

Conversely, JPMorgan ANZ chief executive Robert Bedwell had a different way of operating. The investment bank mandates staff to attend the workplace five days a week due to the nature of the industry and the operating hours of financial markets.

Mr. Bedwell stated that JPMorgan has an office-based work culture where in-office work is the standard practice, not the exception. However, there is some degree of flexibility for junior-level employees and those below the managing director level.

Last year, JPMorgan in the US told its managing directors they must be in the office every weekday to set an example for employees not meeting “in-office attendance expectations” and flagged “corrective action” for those that don’t.

According to Mr Bedwell, office non-attendance can impact collaboration and contribute to a decline in performance. He explains that if an employee is absent in the office, assessing their performance against established criteria becomes challenging.

However, he emphasises that not coming into the office is not the sole reason for termination. Instead, he considers the impact on performance across various metrics over a period of time. If there is consistent underperformance, discussions will be held to evaluate the situation and make appropriate decisions. This approach allows for a nuanced assessment of each individual’s performance.

Intentional connections

When it comes to “mandates”, Canva’s global head of people, Jennie Rogerson advises the company promotes “intentional connections” – rather than strict mandates.

The tech firm has policies for hybrid, remote and flexible work policies so that employees are empowered to choose their preferred work model. Ms Rogerson says that Canva’s approach is to “hire amazing people and trust them”, ensuring they are clear about their roles and the measures of success.

The pandemic and its impact on presentation skills

M&C Saatchi APAC Group chief executive Justin Graham shared in the panel his concerns that those forced to work at home during the pandemic had “missed out on a couple of years of presentation skills and learning”.

“How do you go and develop that skill where that layer just happened naturally through observation in the past?” he said.

Ms Bishop agreed to disagree, stating that working remotely has had an unexpected positive impact on employees’ confidence when presenting to executives. She mentioned that she had team members who had previously struggled with social anxiety and found that the shift to remote work during the COVID-19 pandemic had a beneficial effect.

These individuals felt that remote work levelled the playing field in presenting to boards and executive teams, which helped them regain their confidence. However, Ms Bishop also emphasises that the impact of remote work can vary significantly from person to person, and it’s essential to recognise that everyone’s experience is different.