Could a 5-Hour Work Day Really Work?

Employees dream of working fewer hours without a pay cut and regaining control of their work-life balance. Tower Paddle Boards founder, Stephan Aarstol, is one business owner who agrees that a shorter workday increases employee productivity and a company’s bottom line. Aarstol adopted a five-hour workday and discovered that employees became hyper-focused by cutting out distractions and making flexible decisions about how to spend their free hours.

Working Hard vs. Working Smart

In the early 20th century, the exploited masses viewed Henry Ford’s proposed 40-hour workweek as a godsend that granted more pay and recreational time away from the factories. A 2014 study by operational analytics firm Gallup suggests that modern workers have gradually regained those extra hours. Adults in America with full-time employment work an average of 47 hours each week, while 25 percent of salaried employees say they work 60 hours or more every week. A combination of long work hours and sedentary jobs puts many Americans at high risk of developing health problems such as obesity, heart disease and depression.

Unfortunately, longer workdays rarely improve output, since more time equals more opportunities for distraction. Recognizing that output tends to drop throughout the workday, Aarstol boosted employee productivity by encouraging staff to pinpoint habits that waste time and focus on behaviors that create value. Employees want the privilege of leaving working at 1 p.m., so they cut out unnecessary email, chatting and social media time to manage their workload. Aarstol also introduced a 5 percent profit-sharing initiative that helped staff double their per-hour earnings in May 2015.

Improving Work-Life Balance

A valuable outcome of Aarstol’s 25-hour workweek is that individual workers set their own balance, so happiness and engagement increase in proportion to employee productivity. Employees are free to choose the time and length of their vacation periods within reason, and of course, they can work longer than five hours when immersed in a project. Overall, employees reported a greater sense of contentment because they have more time for family and personal pursuits.

Companies in Sweden are increasingly shifting to a six-hour workday to reflect the number of hours most employees actually spend working. Proponents of shorter workdays believe employee productivity quickly reaches a threshold, and workers waste the remaining time looking for ways to endure their stressful work environments. Economists attribute America’s recent trend toward longer hours to a recession mentality in which workers feel pressured to work more to avoid job loss. However, as Aarstol's example proved, companies can get better employee productivity without offering higher wages by shifting to shorter workweeks.

The standard 40-hour workweek is not likely to disappear overnight, but the success of innovative leaders such as Aarstol may show other employers the advantages of cutting back. Unlike machines, workers need balance to perform at their best. Modern companies have to evaluate smart incentives to increase employee productivity or be prepared to struggle with disgruntled staff and high turnover rates.

Photo courtesy of Stuart Miles at FreeDigitalPhotos.net