New research suggests fewer employees in the UK want to cut their working hours than before the pandemic. On the surface, this might look like the four-day week is losing steam. But scratch beneath the numbers, and the story is more complicated – especially for women.
Dr. Chloe Dixon, of the University of Southampton, studied survey responses from more than 30,000 people between 2018 and 2023. She found that before Covid, nearly 45% of workers wanted to reduce their hours. After the pandemic, that number dropped to 39%. It seems that many now feel unable to risk a smaller paycheck, especially during a cost-of-living crisis. Younger workers, in particular, were least interested in cutting back their hours.
So, does this mean the four-day week is dead? Not at all. For women, it remains more important than ever.
The research shows that 45% of women want to work fewer hours compared with 40% of men. That gap isn’t a coincidence. Women still shoulder the bulk of domestic work and childcare – responsibilities that often make a traditional five-day week feel unmanageable.
In other words, while some groups may hesitate to embrace shorter hours, the demand from women reflects real structural pressures, not just personal preference. A four-day week could help close the gap between paid and unpaid labour, reduce burnout, and support greater equality at home and at work.
Other findings included:
• Only a quarter of people aged 18 to 24 wanted to work fewer hours, compared with 40% of 40-44 year olds and 45% of 55-59 year olds.
• Managers were more interested in working shorter hours (45%) compared with other workers (38%).
• Those with degrees were more willing to work shorter hours (44%) than those with no academic qualifications (34%).
• Higher earners were more likely to want to work fewer hours.
Dixon revealed her findings at the British Sociological Association’s conference on work, employment and society in Manchester earlier this week. She said:
“The results show a significant post-Covid decline in a preference for shorter hours and willingness to accept income reduction. This perhaps reflects the greater insecurity experienced or perceived in the years 2022-23 compared to 2018-19, through things like the cost-of-living crisis and greater job insecurity – workers may have become more protective of their work hours.”
“A higher level of security, status or privilege is usually associated with a stronger preference to reduce hours. We even see this to some extent in the post-Covid decline in interest in working shorter hours, with the post-Covid context likely being a more insecure environment than before.
“Some of the people in their 20s who I interviewed stressed the need for maintaining or improving their current income because of their current circumstances, such as renting in an expensive city. While they still showed interest in shorter hours as long as their pay was maintained, some of them actually struggled to think of what they would actually do with additional time off, reflecting that they didn’t have a family yet and instead would need friends to have a similar work-hour schedule.
“The interviews revealed a stronger interest in reducing work hours than the survey data, perhaps reflecting the different research context. Unlike survey respondents, interview participants were able to articulate and question the assumptions underlying shorter working hours, consider potential trade-offs that remain hidden in quantitative data, and ultimately express a stronger desire for reduced hours.”
If you’re interested in finding out more about a 4-Day Week, click here.
