The ongoing discussion surrounding work-life balance in Australia is beginning to shift. The Greens have called for a move to a four-day work week. This new proposal is an answer to the increasing pressures workers are experiencing today. Take Anna Dadic, for instance—she’s a full-time working mother of two—and she candidly documents her struggle with fatigue as she works to juggle her career and parental duties. According to new research, a shorter work week might relieve some of that pressure and improve employee satisfaction and mental health in the process.
An independent study found that workers who participated in a national four-day work week pilot reported significantly reduced burnout. They experienced greater job satisfaction. They saw greater mental and physical health improvements. These findings point to a strong possibility that this flexible work arrangement could be the key to addressing the increasing epidemic of workplace stress.
On the ground, organizations are pivoting to changing employee needs by embracing flexible work options. Remote work, hybrid models, unlimited leave—these trends are accelerating! Of all these alternatives, the four-day work week really stands out. It can lead to a massive increase in productivity and a truly positive impact on employee health. According to a preview report, 70% of employers that implemented this model observed an increase in productivity. At the same time, one-third of them said there had been no meaningful difference.
Barbara Pocock, the Greens spokesperson for jobs and employment, reaffirmed the party’s commitment to promoting a four-day work week as a viable solution. “It’s a better way to work and one that puts the health and happiness of workers first, while allowing the productivity of businesses to soar,” Pocock stated.
Labor unions are in the trenches pushing for a four day work week. Other high-profile supporters are the Australian Manufacturing Workers Union (AMWU) and the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation (ANMF). Earlier this week, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese reiterated his solid backing for the real world steps coming out of those productivity roundtable talks. These measures have received strong support from business, labor, and civil society.
A new study of 1,400 Australian workers underscores the plight and demonstrates the need for action. Most importantly, it demonstrates that prime-aged workers are under twice the time pressure as older workers. This urgency is especially strong among those juggling work and family obligations. As David Hopkins, workplace expert and co-author of Future Workplaces, goes on to explain, only one-third of jobs today are classified as remote-capable.
Hopkins emphasizes the need for a shift in workplace culture, stating, “We keep beating ourselves up because we can’t get it to work. We lack the vision to do something different.” For instance, he claims productivity has exploded in the last century. This increase has packed a lot more work into the same eight-hour day, leading to a mentally exhausted workforce.
Dadic’s experience resonates with many in today’s workforce. Through her, we hear the strain coming from the impossible expectations placed on working mothers to do both—work and raise a family—flawlessly. As any athlete who has played multiple sports or games on the same day knows, if you don’t allow for proper rest and recovery, performance suffers. It’s very important that workers have enough time to recover,” Hopkins stressed.
With Japan’s recent initiatives to shorten working hours as a means to bolster parenthood—introducing a flexible work system allowing three days off per week—Australia finds itself at a crossroads. CMAP’s chief demographer Liz Allen provides an overview of the benefits of a four-day work week. Beyond improving the work-life balance for modern families, such a policy would go some distance toward addressing the country’s dangerous falling birthrate.
In her statement, Allen contends that societal norms and infrastructure have fueled race- and gender-based inequities in home care. “When it comes to unpaid household work, men are not doing their fair share, and that’s not the fault of men; that’s how we’ve been conditioned,” she said. Allen further criticized existing systems: “Our tax system, our workplace system—all manner of things—are trapping us in this 1950s model of the perfect family.”
The historical context cannot be overlooked, as Henry Ford introduced the five-day work week over 100 years ago, reducing working days from six. Today’s workforce requires a reexamination of what full-time employment looks like. Steve Murphy, national secretary of the AMWU, makes this case when he says that productivity gains have all but disappeared into the pockets of employers instead of workers. He passionately makes the case for the shorter working week as a way to more equitably share the bounty of productivity gains.
