Put down your Friday afternoon spreadsheet. The largest long-term study of the four-day workweek ever conducted has confirmed what workers everywhere have quietly known for decades: that fifth day is mostly wasted time. The report from nonprofit advocacy group 4 Day Week Global tracked workers in the U.S., Canada, Britain, and Ireland over 18 months under a “100:80:100” model – full pay, 80% of the hours, and the same output expected. The verdict? Employees accomplished just as much in a 33-hour workweek as they had in a 38-hour one. Not only that, but the longer people worked the four-day schedule, the more efficient they became, trimming their average week by roughly four hours within six months simply by eliminating the time-wasting meetings and low-value tasks that a longer week had always allowed to creep in. Sick days dropped by 65%. Employee turnover fell by 57%. Company revenue also grew by 15% over the course of the trial.
The momentum behind the movement is now global and accelerating. Poland launched a nationwide four-day workweek pilot in January 2026 with nearly 300 companies participating. Japan has framed shorter weeks as a demographic lifeline for working parents. And back at the office, a 2025 survey found that 69% of employed Americans believe they could do their job in 32 hours a week with millennials, Gen Z, and Gen X all supporting the idea at around 70%. When the trial ended, not a single participating organization wanted to go back to five days, and 89% of workers voted to keep the new schedule permanently. The evidence is in. The case is made. Now we just need Friday off.
