Unilever (UL) has become the latest major company to hop on the four-day work week bandwagon, lending credence to the idea that flexible working is here to stay.
On Tuesday, the distributor of Lipton’s tea, Dove soap and Ben & Jerry’s ice cream announced it would test shorter working hours for all its employees in New Zealand, letting them decide which four days they’d prefer to work each week.
The trial starts this month, and runs for a year. The consumer giant has 81 staff members in the country, who will be allowed to work compressed schedules with full pay as the University of Technology Sydney in Australia helps track their progress.
Unilever said that if all goes well, the company will consider whether to shake up its workflow on a wider scale.
I – Word Understanding
Hop on the bandwagon – to become involved in an activity that has gained popularity recently
Credence – acceptance
Shake up – to make radical changes
II – Have Your Say
1. If given an additional day off (total of 3 days) each week, how would you spend your extra day?
a, Sleep, rest, relax
b, Study something new
c, Travel
d, Special home project
e, Side hustle (Part-time work)
f, Start a business
2. What are the advantages to both workers and employers if work week will be shortened to four days only? Do you see any disadvantages as well?
3. Do you think a 4-day work week can be observed in your country? Do you have other ideas that you think could help improve business and take care of workers’ well being also?
