Would you say no to a three day weekend?

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Spain to trial four-day week in response to Covid pandemic - will the UK do the same? 

Under plans backed by the country's treasury, firms who cut their week to 32 hours with no loss of pay will get financial backing from the government. 

The pilot, which is set to cost the country €50million (£44million), could be rolled out further if successful. Íñigo Errejón, the leader of, Más País, confirmed on Thursday that the country's finance ministry had accepted the plan. 

"The eight hour working day was unrealistic a century ago," he said, responding to criticism. 

Maria Alvarez, a businesswoman and founder of the 4 Day Week Campaign in Spain, said the pilot represented "a sensible idea that should be in every government's toolbox coming out of this crisis".

"What this pilot reveals is that the four-day week has never been a moonshot. Quite the opposite," she said. 

UK based think-tank Autonomy drew up a roadmap on how Britain could shift to shorter week to protect jobs last year. 

"Other governments and political parties, including those here in the UK, should take note," Will Stronge, Autonomy's director, said. 

Joe Ryle, a campaigner with the 4 Day Week UK Campaign, said: "This could pave the way for Spain to become the first country in the world to move towards a four-day working week.

"We know from history that shorter working hours are the best way of spreading existing work more equally across the economy in times of economic recession and crisis. 

"The UK government and the rest of the world should learn from the Spanish example and embrace shorter working hours in response to the Covid pandemic." 

The idea of a four day week is gaining currency in Europe, but what's the latest stance and could it be introduced in Britain?

A 4-day week in the UK 

Left-wing think tank Autonomy says the move would prevent mass layoffs in the wake of coronavirus, by allowing bosses to keep more people on the payroll. 

Switching to a four-day week in the public sector could also create up to half a million jobs, it said.  

Under the think tank's 'Shorter Working Time Subsidy Scheme', firms would cut staff down to 80% hours but still pay 100% of their current wage. 

Wages would be funded 80% by firms and 20% by the state in the first year. 

That state subsidy would then be reduced by 4% per year over five years until it reaches zero - embedding a four-day week more widely. 

The report suggests that the total cost of the initiative would be at least £9billion a year but would save the Government money in the long run.

The four-day working concept first picked up momentum during the 2019 December election, when Labour floated a policy of a 32-hour working week with no loss of pay within ten years. 

Autonomy, which describes itself as an "independent progressive think-tank", said its idea followed on from schemes in Germany and in 1980s Britain. 

Run from 1979 to 1984, the Temporary Short-time Working Compensation Scheme helped British firms preserve endangered jobs by claiming part of a worker’s pay from the state. 

The think tank's Research Director Will Stronge said: "Shorter working time has been used throughout history as a way of responding to economic crises. "It enables work to be shared more equally across the economy. 

Instead of propping up an already failing economy, the government could act to save jobs and create more desirable working patterns for the future."

Source: Daily Mirror

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