Andrew Yang urges US to 'seriously' consider four-day workweeks
Enjoy your long weekend? Andrew Yang wants it to become a fixture of American work culture
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Enjoy your long weekend? Andrew Yang, a former Democratic presidential candidate, wants to see it become a regular fixture of American life.
The tech entrepreneur urged the U.S. to "seriously" consider adopting four-day workweeks in a tweet on Tuesday, following the long Memorial Day weekend.
"3-Day weekends are better than 2-Day weekends," Yang wrote. "We should seriously look at 4-day workweeks. Studies show that we would be just as productive. It would create jobs at the margins and improve mental health."
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The concept of a four-day workweek has been kicked around for years, but it's gained some momentum during the coronavirus pandemic, as companies have been forced to adapt to completely new circumstances, including allowing the majority of their workforce to do their job remotely, if possible.
Yang speaks during a Democratic presidential primary debate Dec. 19, 2019, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)
Yang shared a link to a Washington Post article that laid out the growing popularity of a four-day workweek and highlighted initial studies illustrating the pros of the work experiment, such as increased workplace productivity and satisfaction, as well as the removal of some gender barriers for women to succeed in the workplace.
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In 2019, Microsoft Japan reported that, during an experiment, shortened weeks boosted productivity by roughly 40 percent. Microsoft attributed the jump in sales and productivity to limiting meetings to 30 minutes and allowing employees to attend conferences remotely.
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern paved the way for a shortened workweek as the country begins to reopen from the coronavirus-induced shutdown.
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"I'd really encourage people to think about that, if you're an employer and in a position to do so," Ardern said in a video posted to Facebook, "if that's something that would work for your workplace."
Yang's call for a four-day week is one of the several ambitious proposals that he backs. He brought the concept of universal base income to the forefront during the Democratic primary, and took the inclusion of one-time cash payments of up to $1,200 in the economic-relief package signed at the end of March as an affirmation of his plan.