Latest news with #fourDayWorkWeek
News.com.au
3 days ago
- Business
- News.com.au
Multi-millionaire brands four-day work week the ‘stupidest idea I've ever heard'
A Canadian businessman and multi-millionaire has fired up at the suggestion of a four-day work week being widely adopted, swiftly branding the idea 'stupid' during an interview. Kevin O'Leary, known for his role as one of the investors on the program Shark Tank, didn't hold back when sharing his thoughts during a recent appearance on Fox News. 'There is a big push now for a four day work week, do you think we will become like the French?' one of the presenters asked. The four-day work week is becoming increasingly popular in France, with the country launching it's first official pilot of the program in 2024. In 2000, the country also legally mandated a 35-hour work week, with any hours worked beyond this considered overtime. In 2023, the France's Labor Ministry announced that around 10,000 employees were already working under a four-day model. France isn't the only country where the four-day movement is growing, with pilots taking place all over the world in recent years, including Australia. However, Mr O'Leary is not convinced by the working model's increased popularity. 'That's the stupidest idea I have ever heard,' he said. 'I think we should let the French go to a two-day work week and then kick their arse internationally.' The outspoken businessman claimed that in our post-pandemic world and new digital economy, there is 'no such thing as a work week' anymore. But this isn't to say Mr O'Leary thinks a traditional five-day work week is the answer either, with the multi-millionaire taking a more outcome focused approach. 'Look at my staff, 40 per cent of them work remotely all around the world,' he said. For example, if a project is due by June 15, then he doesn't care how many days a week his staff work, so long as the work is done on time. The businessman's brutal assessment sparked a heated debate, with many defending the four-day work model. One person claimed the 'best job' they ever had operated on a four-day work week, claiming their quality of life went up and they had time to study and upskill. 'I have a four-day work week. I can't express the difference in how much better my work week is given one extra day to decompress,' another said. One added: 'I have been running my company on a four-day work week for a few years now. I can't imagine going back to a five-day week.' However, there were others who agreed with Mr O'Leary's point of view. 'I couldn't agree more with you! I think that is so stupid!' one said. 'The people who want a four-day work week should start their own company,' another claimed. Another agreed, saying the focus should be on getting the work done by specific deadlines, with less focus on how many days a week it may take to complete. One of the common ways that companies implement a four-day week is by using the 100:80:100 model, in which staff keep 100 per cent of their pay but have their work hours reduced to 80 per cent. However, they must maintain 100 per cent of their productivity in order for the change to work. Other options include allowing staff to work a shorter week but for less pay, or offering standard 40 hour weeks condensed over four days. This isn't the first time Mr O'Leary has shared his opinion on divisive workplace topics. In August last year he raged at the Australian government following the introduction of the Right To Disconnect law. The law gives employees the right to refuse contact outside of their working hours. Staff are not required to monitor, read, or respond to contact from an employer or third party – within reason. The change left Mr O'Leary baffled. 'What happens if you have an event in the office and it is closed? Or you have an emergency room somewhere and you have to get of hold of them at 2am in the morning because it affects the job they are on,' he told Fox News at the time. 'This kind of stuff just makes me crazy. It is so dumb. Who dreams this crap up? Why would anyone propose such a stupid idea?' He added that he would 'fire' an employee if they ignored his calls and didn't get back to him. Doubling down in a lengthy post to X, Mr O'Leary wrote: 'If you can't be reached when the job depends on it, you're out.' 'Who dreams up these ridiculous ideas? If someone tells me they're in 'silent mode,' they're fired,' he said.
Yahoo
09-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Could Maine adopt a four-day workweek? One legislator wants to find out
Sen. Rick Bennett (R-Oxford) addresses the upper chamber on May 7, 2025. (By Emma Davis/ Maine Morning Star) A Republican legislator is pushing for the state to lay the groundwork for a four-day work week by establishing a pilot project and a tax credit to encourage participation. Sen. Rick Bennett of Oxford presented a resolve, LD 1865, to the Taxation Committee on Thursday that would establish a pilot project administered by the Maine Department of Labor to 'promote, incentivize and support' the use of a four-day work week and study the benefits and effects of the schedule change. 'This proposal is rooted in a simple principle,' Bennett said. 'Maine people work hard and they deserve to thrive, not just survive.' Bennett said his proposal is not about working less but working smarter, but some Republican legislators on the committee were critical of the plan. 'Working five days a week, that's part of being an adult,' said Rep. Tracy Quint of Hodgdon. Bennett pushed back. 'I don't think part of being an adult is to have to work in a given rigor that was handed to us by what worked in 1938,' he said, adding that when former President Franklin D. Roosevelt ushered in the 40-hour work week about 80 years ago, critics feared economic disaster but instead it helped usher in an era of prosperity. 'I do not want our state policy making to be governed by fear,' Bennett said. The pilot project would be voluntary, open to all private and public employers with at least 15 employees, but selection will be up to a process established by the Department of Labor to ensure a wide breadth of participation. Research on four-day work weeks is in its early stages, and not all four-day work weeks look the same. Bennett said he'd like the pilot to involve a reduction in hours per week to 32 hours, eight hours per day, without any loss of pay, employment status or benefits. Other models compress 40 hours into four days. An international trial of more than 200 companies that switched to a reduced hours workweek like Bennett proposed found improved worker well-being, retention and recruitment, with most companies choosing to continue the model. However, other studies identified some negative impacts, including scheduling problems, more intense monitoring measures and a risk of benefits fading over time. Some private Maine businesses have implemented four-day work weeks, using varying methods, as well as a handful of municipalities, including South Portland, Lewiston and Biddeford. In order to encourage participation, the resolve would also establish a tax credit against income taxes owed by that employer. The specifics of that credit are not outlined in the proposal. Currently, it states that it would be determined by the department and the State Tax Assessor, but constitutionally tax changes must go through the Legislature, so ultimately such a decision would have to come back to lawmakers. Rep. Shelley Rudnicki (R-Fairfield) questioned why a tax credit is necessary if some municipalities and businesses in Maine have already implemented four-day work weeks, but Bennett said Maine-specific data on effectiveness is lacking. The credit would be an incentive to help the state gather that data, and it is not intended to replace the cost of the additional eight-hour work day. 'I want it to be proven out that the productivity gains and the other possible advancements are achievable and aren't just replaced by state tax dollars,' Bennett said. Pressed on the cost the tax credit could incur the state by legislators of both parties, Bennett said he would return with specifics for the work session but anticipates it to be modest. He is also open to the committee choosing to fund an incentive in another way, noting that he modeled his plan after a similar bill currently being considered in Massachusetts that uses taxpayer dollars. 'I hope that you don't reject it on that basis,' he said. The duration of the pilot project in Maine would be at least two years but no more than four years, which would be determined by the Department of Labor. The resolve specifies that participating employers should be diverse in size, industry location and ownership, including those owned by veterans, women, minorities and people with disabilities. Those participating should also have both employees who are exempt from and subject to the federal Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938. No one testified for or against the measure on Thursday, but Patrick Woodcock, president and CEO of the Maine State Chamber of Commerce, spoke neither for nor against. Woodcock said, if the resolve does pass, the chamber would want to partner with the Department of Labor to make the pilot as effective as possible, noting that it would be helpful to gather data about how a four-day work week would work for salaried versus hourly employees. 'I think ultimately, for something like this to be successful, you do need the executive buy-in,' Woodcock said. 'If this does have a trend of being utilized as a best practice, I think Maine does need to be at the forefront of consideration of this model.' The department would be required to report annually to the Legislature on the progress and participation levels for the duration of the pilot project and then submit a final report. The report would assess the economic and social effect of a four-day workweek on the participating employers and the effect on the wellbeing of participating employees, as well as include recommendations. However, throughout the pilot, participating employers must provide the department access to employer data and participating employees including through interviews and surveys on a regular basis, though employees can opt out of those inquiries and any data gathered must be anonymized. The State Tax Assessor would also be required to submit an annual report on the tax credit. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
