Would you rather work:

4 * 10 hour days
or
5 * 8 hour days

BBC Article

Personally I would rather work 4 longer days and might try and see if I can wangle it in my next job.

If you are an employer what would be the considerations when dealing with a request like this?

What say you all?

I’ve done both and I preferred 4×10. Was handy to have an extra day off during the week.

Edit. Used to do 4.5 days a weeks. Days were a bit longer but got a half day instead. That was good.

I’d rather work 4*10. Or at least work from home on Fridays but I appreciate not everyone can work from home.

Like I expect it will be on here the comments on that article are so divided!

I’d be happy with 40 hours or less in a week in any combination to be honest. 4 x 10 only gives four opportunities rather than five to work late, so I suppose that one would be best.

I remember trying to do the 4 * 10 thing once, back when I was younger and trying to make an impression on the company. That turned into 5 * 10.

Now I’m cynical and think there is no reason why the same thing would not happen.

I’d rather work 4 x 10.

Not really an option though as when there’s guys on site we need to be here to supervise!

I used to work a 3 x 12.5hr.

8am – 8.30pm on Thursday, Friday, Saturday, (Sunday off) Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday.

Have a week off, repeat process. It’s the way forward. Why oh why did I give that up?!

Flexitime. Core hours of 10-3, no more than 2 days to be carried over to the next calendar month.

It used to be the way forward. Now it’s the ‘professional working day’ instead- all give, no take.

depends on the job and the output, the more customer facing the more ‘regular’ hours suit. A data entry monkey can do 1×40 and take the rest of the week off.

2 days 8-6 10hrs
2 nights 6-8 14hrs
3 days off

I do 37.5/week, but I skip my lunchbreak and do 8-3.30, which suits me. Someone else does 6-1.30, which suits him, especially during the summer, so he can wander down to the pub when he gets home… 🙄

Oh how I dream of 10 hour days at work.

work 40 hours a week ?!??!?!?!

Get lost. 5×7 is sufficient.

I have the option of doing 4×8.75, but I prefer the extra time flexibility in the evenings rather than a day ‘off’.

I also work flexible hours (not flexitime where you can bank time), so to an extent I can work as short or long a day as I want, if needs be, within reason (i.e. no adverse impact on the business).

Oh how I dream of 10 hour days at work.

Well stick in and work harder. 😉

4×10 deffo, but that’s cos I already do 4 x 10 then 15 at the weekends and a couple on my day off

Well stick in and work harder.

Why’d I want to do that? 😀

I opted for 4×7.5 and a pay cut

Give me 4×10 anyday and get a three day weekend.

4 x 7.5 and it is what I do

Its super having one extra day off and it makes the week fly

Jesus, what a bunch of lightweights!

I used to work a standard working week, plus unpaid overtime and call out 1 week in four before others and myself took leave. In practice, it meant 1 in three weeks on call, often working around the clock. Average 70 hrs o/t per month, no set patterns and on three occasions over 7 years, did 3 stints of working 9 weeks without a day off.

In earlier jobs, I did an average 125hrs a month and the longest in scheduled shift I did was 36hrs.

Lunch hours and breaks did not exist, pension was only paid on basic salary (which was pxss poor)

That was my experience of full time employment for over 20 years.

When I ceased working in this field, I had every weekend off. It was like being on holiday, but still getting paid.

People obsessing about whether working four longer days is preferrale than 5 standard days clearly don’t care about their colleagues, or the business that employs them. They probably hate their jobs too.

I would suggest they try self-employment, learn to stand on their own two feet, by generating their own income. Only then will they appreciate how lucky they are to have a regular income with regular social hours. No wonder employers pedal the idea that British workers are lazy!

Did you want a medal?

Why on earth would you do that when you can get paid more to work 37.5 hour week for a company with all the trimmings eg Paid holiday, pension, health care, etc.

Seems a very strange choice….

I would suggest they try self-employment, learn to stand on their own two feet, by generating their own income. Only then will they appreciate how lucky they are to have a regular income with regular social hours. No wonder employers pedal the idea that British workers are lazy!

I am self employed and very much like the idea of a 4 day week. If everyone did it (or at least had the option) then how would that relate to hating one’s job or colleagues?

I get paid by the day. In the eyes of my contract, 1 day is 8 hours.

Would like to do 4 longer days, but unfortunatly that would be seen as 4 days pay and thanks for the unpaid overtime 🙁

Dave

As always, the Daily Mash sums it up nicely:
http://www.thedailymash.co.uk/news/society/britain-could-move-to-a-one-day-week-if-everyone-stopped-dicking-around-2013020158225

🙂

Nice troll Spongebob (at least I hope it was, I can’t believe anyone is stupid enough to work those hours when other options are available).
Personally I’d love to at least try 3 x 12.5 instead of 5 x 7.5

i’d prefer to clock up my hours in the winter months and kick back in summer when the trails are dry and the beer gardens are open. in fact, that is pretty much how it works for me, although i may take on a bit of chippy work in the summer this year – weather depending.

I would suggest they try self-employment, learn to stand on their own two feet, by generating their own income.

Lol.

Hold on so I can go and tell all of my colleagues that they need to be self employed and work 125+ hours a week to demonstrate the they can stand on their own two feet 🙂

How about demonstrating some efficiency/effectiveness?

EDIT: wow, just realised that you were doing 125 hours a MONTH!!! That’s a part time job?? What are you getting on your high horse about?

4X10 sounds great. I mean, I do that anyway and then work Friday as well. Another ten hours.

3 twelve hour shifts here. Four weeks of wed, thurs, fri days (7.30 to 7.30) then a sat off and for weeks of sun, mon, tues days then a week off and repeat on nights. Done it for 24 years and it takes longer to get over a week of nights as I get older. Extra pay and time off is great. Always book hols around a shift change so 2 weeks off for three days leave.

Always book hols around a shift change so 2 weeks off for three days leave.

That’s what I did on my shift. Take 6 days leave, get three weeks holiday! 🙂

no one; anyone

No i am not trolling and i was doing 125 hours o/t, on top of standard hours. This was 25 years ago and I would not do it now because I no longer need to, but the work isn’t there these days anyway.

No, don’t want a medal, just cant believe how employees want their cake and eat it!

The job I did was vital to keeping large corporations trading. It was certainly a very efficient deal for my employers, but actually, whoever said I was stupid enough to do that clearly doesn’t understand the practical realities of the jobs market and meeting their personal responsibilities. They are just picky, if needs must and no viable alternative presents, you just get on with it.

I was focused on delivering service and took great pride in my work and professionalism. it was expected that we maintained high standards, or we’d lose business and subsequently, our jobs. Personal needs were of zero interest to our customers. Let me pose a question; the next time you are on a customer support line dealing with a frustrating issue, where the firm has repeatedly let youndown, overcharged you etc etc. Is there any point when you worry about the person you are talking about, what hours they do, what breaks etc? No, you don’t! The chances are that the reason you are needing to complain is because there is a dysfunctional work force within that organisation – too many people thinking about their own selfish needs and not getting on and delivering to their customer. People who go the extra mile to not do what they are employed to do, possibly because they think they are underpaid, undervalued, or just bone idle!

The motives of the OP and this post is about the self and not how individuals contribute to the aims and needs of their employer, or how their attitudes and activities affect their customers and colleagues.

I’ve worked in the largest organisation in the world and they have adopted flexitime, working from home. In practice, you find key people knocking off early just when you need them most, because they chose to start 2 hours before the rest of the team. The whole organsoation is out of control and very inefficient. Customers hate the tardiness and inability to get simple tasks completed in reasonable time.

Personally, I can’t work in an environment like this. I enjoy doing a good job and getting things done, but with people only focused on themselves, what days/hours they work, they may as well not bother. Either work as a team, or do your own thing. People demanding flexitime are like tails wagging the dog – don’t deserve a full time regular paid job and just make businesses mediocre and weak. Keep up your self centred attitudes! The foreigners will take your jobs and you will be on benefits until you get off your butts and take what you deserve!

Rant over!

4*10 from those too choices

However, used to work 4 on 4 off starting at 9.45am finishing at 9pm

Bloody loved that, time for a per work ride, time for a post work pint.

Then 4 days off, brilliant. Not so great with family commitments I’d imagine.

Bloody hell, where’d that flexi time rant come from. I’ll have to read the thread and the article now.

THANKS, NOT.

I’ll never get that time back y’know.

I would suggest they try self-employment, learn to stand on their own two feet, by generating their own income

Sorry miss read your posts, didn’t realise you was trolling

21 days of 12 hours on 12 hours off – then 21 days off. It’s alright if things coincide with school hols etc – but not this year. It’s actually a bit pants.

too many people thinking about their own selfish needs and not getting on and delivering to their customer profits to their masters

Fixed it. 🙂

I am genuinely puzzled at the concept of working a fixed set of hours. Aside from those in shift and where safety interests (rightly) dictate a maximum, I didn’t think anyone really finished work at a certain time. I haven’t since I finished doing shift work 20 odd years ago.

Not trolling just genuinely surprised.