The Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) is calling for a transition to a four-day work week. They’re confident this amendment will increase overall productivity and living standards across the country. This new effort would directly respond to perennial complaints about anemic productivity growth. Even better, it addresses the growing problem of companies not investing enough in their employees. The ACTU believes that moving toward a world of shorter working hours would produce positive outcomes for workers and businesses alike.
ACTU President Michele O’Neil emphasized the advantages of a four-day work week, stating that “shorter working hours are good for both workers and employers.” According to a peer-reviewed study published in Nature Human Behaviour, the time to make this change is now. This data set represents 2,896 employees of 141 organizations in Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, Canada, the UK and USA. The results uncovered an exhilarating reality: productivity skyrockets with a four-day work week. It’s not only good for morale, it cuts burnout and improves employee health and retention.
Evidence from Recent Studies
That’s the finding of a 2023 report from Swinburne University, which studied ten Australian companies testing the four-day work week. Those results showed that productivity grew in 70 percent of the participating firms. Over the same time period, the other 30 percent were able to keep their pre-trial productivity levels. This rationale further supports the ACTU’s position. Cutting back on working hours would not only produce a more engaged workforce, it would go a long way to fostering a better work-life balance.
According to the ACTU, the relationship between productivity growth and improvements in living standards is not straightforward. It’s not really that simple, despite how it looks on its face. The labor group vehemently argues that even as workers have become more productive, their productivity has not resulted in commensurate increases in real wage growth. In fact, if wages had kept pace with productivity since 2000, the typical worker would be about $350 per week better off. O’Neil remarked, “A fair go in the age of AI should be about lifting everyone’s living standards instead of just boosting corporate profits and executive bonuses.”
Upcoming Economic Reform Roundtable
As the ACTU prepares to put in its claim for a four-day work week. They’ll be presenting their case at the Economic Reform Roundtable, taking place inside Parliament House from August 19th to 21st. This three-day event will be a unique forum for thought-leaders from all sectors to define a collective agenda to build and strengthen Australia’s economic prosperity. Business leaders and community organizations have already delivered almost 900 creative proposals to help jumpstart our economy. These concepts are the crux of what we hope to explore through our future conversations together.
In fact, Treasurer Jim Chalmers has long suggested that any moves to improve productivity should first involve tax reform. “No sensible progress could be made on productivity, resilience or budget sustainability without proper consideration of more tax reform,” he stated at the National Press Club in June. This view provides even more urgency for all the conversations about the need for economic reform.
Implications for Policy and Society
The ACTU is currently campaigning for a four day work week. This ambitious endeavor seeks to ensure that national prosperity extends to all Australians, including those in more rural and remote areas. The union argues that increasing productivity alone does not guarantee better standards of living. As labor productivity growth remains uncertain, with warnings from the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA), there is growing pressure on Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to address these issues comprehensively.
As the summit approaches, O’Neil reiterated her commitment to advocating for policies that would “deliver improved productivity and allow working people to live happier, healthier and more balanced lives.” Further, the ACTU actively imagines a large-scale transition to a four-day workweek. In addition, they seek to defend wage levels and terms and conditions through sector-specific bargaining models.
