Four-Day Work Week with Joe O’Connor

In an era where burnout, ‘quiet quitting’, and work-life balance have permeated the conversation around employment, how can employers stand out? The implementation of a shorter work week is the most equitable way to strive towards this universal goal of balance and happiness. While a Canadian pilot of a four-day week is still underway, recent results from a similar UK trial show a four-day workweek can significantly improve employee wellness. Key findings include:54% of employees reported a reduction in negative emotions43% reported an increase in mental health    71% reported a decrease in burnout        54% reported a better work-life balanceHelping Bill Banham to delve into these findings today is Joe O’Connor a globally recognized expert in shorter working weeks. Joe leads the Toronto-based Work Time Reduction Centre of Excellence (WTR-CoE) that's focused on how a four-day week might work in the HR field and what it might mean for recruitment, retention and employee happiness.Questions for Joe Include: Can you tell us what inspired you to get involved with the four-day workweek movement?What are some of the benefits of a shorter working week?How does a shorter workweek affect retention and recruitment?What are some key obstacles to the four-day week you’ve seen that HR professionals might encounter and how can we best overcome them?What’s your hope for the future of the shorter workweek movement?What are some things HR professionals can implement (such as training, tools and technology) to make a shorter work week a reality?More About Joe O'Connor, Director &Co-founder, Work Time Reduction Center of ExcellenceJoe is the Director and Co-founder of the world's first Center of Excellence in Work Time Reduction, a new global initiative based in Toronto, Canada, which has been launched in partnership with leading people-first transformation company Curium Solutions.Previously, as the chief executive officer of 4 Day Week Global, Joe led the design and implementation of four-day week trials all over the world, supporting hundreds of employers and thousands of employees to make the transition to reduced-hour, productivity-focused working in 2021 and 2022.Joe recently led a research project on work time reduction as a visiting research scholar with Cornell University in New York City. He is now based in Toronto, where he heads up Canadian operations for Curium Solutions in addition to directing the Work Time Reduction CoE.Joe is also formerly the chairperson of the Four Day Week Ireland campaign, having founded the coalition in 2019, where he developed the world's first four-day week pilot program and research project in 2021. He has been active on the issue of working time reduction since 2018, when he organized a major international conference and research paper on ‘The Future of Working Time’.Did You Know...The World Day of Happiness, celebrated on March 20 by the United Nations, recognizes happiness as a universal goal and calls for a more inclusive and balanced approach to economic growth that promotes the happiness and well-being of all people.  We do our best to ensure editorial objectivity. The views and ideas shared by our guests and sponsors are entirely independent of The HR Gazette, HRchat Podcast and Iceni Media Inc.   Support the showFeature Your Brand on the HRchat PodcastThe HRchat show has had 100,000s of downloads and is frequently listed as one of the most popular global podcasts for HR pros, Talent execs and leaders. It is ranked in the top ten in the world based on traffic, social media followers, domain authority & freshness. The podcast is also ranked as the Best Canadian HR Podcast by FeedSpot and one of the top 10% most popular shows by Listen Score. Want to share the story of how your business is helping to shape the world of work? We offer sponsored episodes, audio adverts, email campaigns, and a host of other options. Check out packages here.Follow us on LinkedInSubscribe to our newsletterCheck out our in-person events