By Jillian Broaddus and Chuck Cusumano
The Olympics are over, the mornings are getting cooler, and school buses are making their rounds. It’s officially nearing the end of the summer season, which had us thinking…
What happened to Summer Fridays?
The prevalence of “Summer Fridays” – many companies’ flexible policies allowing employees to take a few hours, the entire afternoon, or even the whole day off from work from (often) May to September – has been on a dramatic decline. According to a 2023 report, only 11% of North American workers say they have been offered the benefit, down from 55% in 2019.
One big reason? The 2020 pandemic causing a work-from-home revolution, allowing work-from-home Fridays to take the place of Summer Fridays.
However, this could be a dangerous spiral – especially when we realize that work-from-home life can actually cause employees to overwork, not being able to “sign off” quite as easily when their bedroom is their office.
Need more evidence that Summer Fridays should be here to stay?
27% of employees with flexible or off Summer Fridays said they’d consider leaving their company if reduced workweeks were taken away.
Two-thirds of employees claimed that Summer Fridays helped to boost their productivity.
One year-round 4-day workweek experiment reported improved happiness, productivity, and business outcomes.
87% of Americans report that they’d be interested in a 4-day workweek.
So, what are you waiting for?
If you need our help in figuring out how to switch up the schedule for your organization, reach out to us at hello@thejoshuagroup.net!
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