Scotland will allow some civil servants to switch to a four-day working week, The Times reported, with the launch of pilot schemes affecting a number of departments and agencies.
First Minister Humza Yousaf is expected to announce the plan Tuesday and the experiment will run for about 12 months, the London-based newspaper said, without citing sources.
Advisers hope the schemes will spur the private sector to make similar changes, improving work-life balance for employees and giving Yousaf’s Scottish National Party a boost ahead of the election expected next year, The Times said.
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Last year, the largest-ever trial of the four-day work week took place in the UK. Almost 3,000 workers in 61 organizations adopted a shorter working week for six months. The majority of employers involved stuck with a four-day week when the experiment ended, citing revenue gains, lower staff turnover and reduced worker burnout.
A number of smaller trials in the US, Ireland and Australia delivered similar results.
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