There's a new trial going on in businesses big and small across the country- it's allowing people more time off work, but in return workers are expected to be more productive than ever before.
Interestingly, the four-day work week has received a lot of attention recently as Charlton Morris, amongst other Leeds-based employers, announced their employees would benefit from working across four days instead of the traditional five.
But this new scheme is giving an entire nation a chance to trial working just four-days a week.
It may sound a little too good to be true, but it’s not.
Image: Annie Spratt, Unsplash
This six-month pilot programme is being performed by 4 Day Week Global, along with think tank Autonomy, the 4 Day Week UK campaign, and researchers from Cambridge University, Oxford University, and Boston College, and as part of the trial, employees at each of the companies signed-up to take part will work for just 80% of their normal contracted work week at 100% of their pay for the sole purpose of monitoring the impact it has on productivity, as well as staff welfare.
It’s called the ‘100:80:100’ model – you will get paid for 100% of your work, but for it to be fair, the catch is that you must agree to work at 100% productivity.
Participating businesses and companies will receive support from those organising the trial, and that includes access to experts and pioneers within the field, mentoring, and research by top academics.
The plan is to get 30 businesses on board, and mirror some of the successful programmes that have already been carried out, and are planned elsewhere in the world this year.
Once the six-month trial is complete, the programme organisers will take a look at the project as a whole, crunch the numbers, and attempt to ascertain what effect the four-day working week had on productivity for the businesses involved, as well as the wellbeing of its workers, and the impact on the environment and gender equality.
Other studies in the past claim to have found that a four-day week is better for both productivity and worker wellbeing, but there is undoubtedly more research to be done, and that’s what this trail is aiming to do.
Speaking on the trial, Joe O’Connor – Pilot Programme Manager for 4 Day Week Global – said: “More and more businesses are moving to productivity focused strategies to enable them to reduce worker hours without reducing pay [and] we are excited by the growing momentum and interest in our pilot program and in the four-day week more broadly.
“The four-day week challenges the current model of work and helps companies move away from simply measuring how long people are ‘at work’, to a sharper focus on the output being produced.
Image: Sean Pollock, Unsplash
“2022 will be the year that heralds in this bold new future of work.”
“This scheme has tremendous potential to progress from conversations about the general advantages of a shorter working week to focussed discussions on how organisations can implement it in the best possible way,” added Brendan Burchill, from Autonomy.
A renowned brewery have announced that they will be taking over the reigns of a popular craft beer bottle shop in Ilkley.
Fuggle & Golding opened in 2015 on Leeds road in Ilkley and quickly grew a loyal following with locals and visitors alike.
Sadly they announced last month that their last day of trading would be Saturday 28 February, news which was met with huge disappointment.
However this is no longer the case, as Horsforth Brewery is set to reopen the venue on Wednesday. Hooray!
Announcing the welcomed news to Instagram, Horsforth Brewery wrote: "When we saw they were going to close we were determined to not lose another great venue from the local beer scene.
"We owe a massive thank you to George and the landlord for getting a deal across the line in quick order.
"We’re going to take a few days to put our stamp on the place and then we will be open on Wednesday!"
"Obviously we will be stocking our beers here but as anyone who knows will know, we love the beer scene so we will continue to have a good amount of guest beer on as well. We’ll even been joining in with the biggest beer launches from around the country.
"Want to know the best news? We’re doing this solo. No outside interests, no investors, no debt. In the current climate being able to organically grow like this is so so hard and it’s thanks to all our team that we’ve been able to do this.
"We’ve always been determined to grow our business in a healthy and sustainable way; it may have (absolutely has) been tough over the years but we’ve got ourselves in a position to take us to the next level in a sustainable way."
Beloved late night Leeds cocktail bar The Maven announces permanent closure
Clementine Hall
"After years of late nights, strong cocktails, and incredible stories; The Maven will close its doors"
It's a sad day for the Leeds night life scene, as a beloved speakeasy bar has today announced that it will be closing its doors for good.
The Maven has been a firm favourite for many years with those looking to enjoy some experimental and expertly made cocktails.
Hidden behind an unassuming door at the top of Call Lane, it was a great spot to visit if you were looking for something that little bit special.
Announcing the news to their social media, The Maven said: "From the bottom of our hearts we thank you for being our guests over the years and promise that until then, we'll do our best to give you the best nights out on Call Lane."
Sophie Smith -
18th January 2022 
