In the world's largest four-day work week trial spanning over six months, most employers in the UK have found that productivity was maintained and they would permanently want to stick to it.

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Employees at 61 companies across Britain worked an average of 34 hours across four days between June and December 2022 while earning their current salary. Of those, 56 companies, or 92 percent, opted to continue like that, 18 of them permanently, research shows.

Autonomy, a British-based research organisation which published the report alongside a group of academics and with backing from New Zealand-based group 4 Day Week Global, involved about 2,900 staffers across different sectors, ranging from finance company Stellar Asset Management to digital manufacturer Rivelin Robotics and fish-and-chip shop in the coastal town of Wells-next-the-sea for the trail.

Does a 4-day work week benefit both companies & employees? The results of the world's biggest trial are out. @ArchanaaSolanki shares details#4DayWorkWeek #work #companies #employees pic.twitter.com/2heb6Zt8En

— CNBC-TV18 (@CNBCTV18News) February 21, 2023

The report published by 4 Day Week says that over the six-month trial period, employee stress and burnout significantly declined, with 71 percent of employees reporting lower levels of burnout. Reported anxiety, fatigue and sleep issues decreased, while mental and physical health both experienced improvements.

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Survey respondents said their work-life balance improved as they found it easier to keep up with family and social commitments and were more satisfied with their household finances, relationships and how their time was managed.

On the business impact side of the trial, companies' revenue stayed broadly the same, rising by 1.4 percent on average, the report said, adding that there was a substantial decline (57 percent) in the likelihood that an employee would quit, dramatically improving job retention. Also, there was a 65 percent reduction in sick days.

Director of the 4 Day Week Campaign, Joe Ryle, said, "This is a breakthrough moment for the movement towards a four-day working week."

Fifteen percent of employees said that no money would induce them to accept a five-day schedule over the four-day week to which they were accustomed.

Also Read: A report card of countries that toyed with shorter workweeks

During the trial, resisting the idea that the four-day week must be 'one- size-fits-all' each company designed a policy tailored to its particular industry, organisational challenges, departmental structures and work culture. Therefore, a range of four-day weeks was developed, from classic 'Friday off' models to ‘staggered', 'decentralised', 'annualised', and 'conditional' structures.

Meanwhile, a Reuters report noted that while the findings may be interesting for companies struggling for talent, other surveys show very few other British employers plan a four-day week soon.

It pointed to a survey done last year by Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD), representing human resources professionals, that found in corporate Britain as a whole very few employers expect to move to a four-day week in the next three years. Two thirds expected no change in the next decade.

Also Read: Why more countries are looking at four-day work-week option