More than 200,000 additional workers in the UK have shifted to a four-day working week since 2019, according to new data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). The findings show a significant cultural and economic shift in British employment, as employers and employees alike embrace shorter working schedules in the pursuit of greater productivity and improved work-life balance.
Between October and December 2024, nearly 1.4 million full-time workers and 100,000 part-time staff were working four days per week, compared with about 1.29 million full-time staff five years earlier. In percentage terms, this means 10.9% of the UK workforce were working four days a week by late 2024, up from 9.8% in 2019. While still a minority, the rise indicates growing confidence in a model once regarded as an unorthodox experiment.
Campaigners at the 4 Day Week Foundation report that more than 420 companies, representing over 12,000 employees, have formally adopted the shorter schedule. The organisations range from technology firms and professional services to charities and consultancies, suggesting that enthusiasm for the model is not confined to a single sector. Employers often cite increased staff retention, reduced absenteeism and stronger morale as key outcomes of the shift. One of the most prominent examples is South Cambridgeshire District Council, which became the first local authority in the country to permanently adopt a four-day working week following a lengthy trial. Over the course of 27 months, the council found that the shorter week improved efficiency, cut the number of vacancies and saved nearly £400,000 per year. Staff reported higher satisfaction and reduced stress, while service delivery remained stable or improved.
The political climate has also begun to change. The previous Conservative government opposed four-day week trials in the public sector, warning they were “unacceptable” and risked reducing frontline service delivery. In contrast, the incoming Labour government has taken a more supportive stance, granting local authorities greater freedom to explore flexible working models. Scotland has already begun its own public sector pilot, launched in 2024, designed to assess the economic and social implications of the policy.
For workers, the attraction is straightforward: more time with family, greater opportunities for education or volunteering, and an improved sense of balance between personal and professional life. Advocates also highlight benefits for mental health, with staff reporting lower levels of burnout and fatigue. Employers, meanwhile, point to the business case, with evidence that output per worker often rises when hours are reduced without cutting pay. Not all industries can adapt as easily. Sectors such as retail, hospitality and healthcare remain heavily dependent on round-the-clock staffing and may find shorter weeks impractical. Nonetheless, the momentum is building. The steady rise in adoption since 2019 demonstrates that, in knowledge-based and service-oriented sectors at least, the four-day week is becoming less a novelty and more a realistic, mainstream option.
The move of more than 200,000 workers to four-day schedules marks a notable turning point in the evolution of British work. While it is unlikely to replace the five-day week across the economy in the immediate future, it increasingly looks less like a passing trend and more like the shape of things to come.
