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Editorial
Microsoft cuts work week, boosts productivity
Tuesday, November 5, 2019
Now that you’re going to work an hour later, thanks to the end of daylight saving time, how about taking it a step farther?
As part of its “Work-Life Choice Challenge,” Microsoft’s Japan office closed its offices every Friday in August and found that labor productivity increased by 39.9% compared to August 2018.
Full-time employees were given paid leave during the closures.
The company also implemented a 30-minute limit on meetings and encouraged more remote communication.
The company saved money in other ways as well; electricity consumption dropped by 23.1% compared to the previous August, and paper consumption was reduced as well; the number of pages printed decreased by 58.7%
A shorter work week won’t work for every industry, of course, but we remember some school’s that went to a four-day week, with Friday set aside for sports and other activities.
Like many enterprises, Friday is probably one of the least productive days when it comes to education.
What do you think? Would you favor a four-day work week?
Give us your opinion here.