Consumer goods company Unilever New Zealand is extending its four-day work week experiment after encouraging results from an 18-month trial.
Under the scheme, employees get a day off each week if they meet productivity targets in four days.
It has been trialled for 80 New Zealand staff and will now be extended to include Unilever Australia for a year.
The trial, assessed by the University of Technology Sydney, showed strong results in revenue growth, staff well-being and engagement, reduced work/life conflict, and positive environmental outcomes.
It encouraged employees to save time by re-prioritising their day, dropping pointless tasks, and cutting meetings short.
According to Unilever NZ managing director Cameron Heath, "when people had a little bit of skin in the game, when there was something to play for and something on the table, they were really willing to work with us to come up with solutions".
Unilever's trial follows an example set by estate planning company Perpetual Guardian, which introduced four-day work weeks in 2018.
Perpetual Guardian Group CEO Patrick Gamble said it worked because "if they don't achieve those productivity targets they're not going to continue to have the benefits of the four day week, so the staff themselves drive that discipline".
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