Instead of a 5 day working week you work 4 days with no reduction in salary of productivity. This reduced working week was set up by 4 Day Week Global.
The 4 day work week has been gaining momentum in recent years with co-ordinated trials started in 2022 with a number of employers across various countries.
After seeing positive results most organisations who took part in the trial period have opted to continue with the 4 day week and more are showing an interest.
Monday - Thursday: Regular work days and hours
Friday: Non working day.
This system is highly prevalent in sectors like retail, healthcare, and manufacturing due to their variable workloads and seasonal demands.
Annualised hours contracts specifiy the total number of hours an employee must work over the year but do not define when these hours will be worked.
The employee has to work a certain number of hours over the year but they have some flexibility about when they work. There are sometimes ‘core hours’ which the employee regularly works each week, and they work the rest of their hours flexibly or when there’s extra demand at work.
Annualised pay distributes an employee's salary evenly throughout the year, irrespective of the hours worked in a specific month. This provides a consistent income stream for the employee, while employers can effectively balance staffing with business demand.
For more information have a look at the Government site and the Onfolk site.