The four-day workweek gets a new booster: AI
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If you can get more done in less time using AI, why not work fewer hours?
Why it matters: The idea is gaining traction among proponents of the four-day workweek, and at least one software startup CEO tells Axios that he's moved his company to a 32-hour week — with no change in pay — because of AI.
Where it stands: Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) brought it up on Joe Rogan's podcast recently.
- "You're a worker, your productivity is increasing because we give you AI, right?" Sanders said. "Instead of throwing you out on the street, I'm going to reduce your workweek to 32 hours."
- Sanders is a four-day workweek booster, having introduced a 32-hour workweek bill last year, though such a proposal is unlikely to get far in Congress.
How it works: Instead of firing people, proponents argue that firms share the gains of improved technology by giving workers some of their time back.
- Instead of fearing AI will replace them, workers welcome its advancements and figure out creative ways to leverage the tech.
- The four-day workweek community, which took off in the post-pandemic pro-worker era, is buzzing about AI right now, says economist Juliet Schor, who has a new book out this month called "Four Days a Week."
- Schor is also lead researcher for 4DWG, a global nonprofit that's piloted shorter workweeks with 245 organizations in the U.S., U.K. and elsewhere.
"The ability of large language models like ChatGPT to wipe out millions of good-paying positions means we need to be intentional about how we adjust to that technology," she writes in the book. "Reducing hours per job is a powerful way to keep more people employed."
Reality check: Smaller firms can more easily implement a big change like a four-day week — larger companies are likely to have a harder time making it happen, experts say.
- Firms also have a strong preference for layoffs to appease investors.
But reducing work hours to make sure a lot of people don't lose their jobs when technology advances isn't a new idea.
- Shortening work hours as a way to reduce unemployment was one of the arguments wielded by advocates for five-day workweeks back in the early 20th century. (That used to be a wild idea, too.)
Earlier this month, Roger Kirkness, the CEO of a small software startup called Convictional moved the company to a four-day workweek — without reducing anyone's pay.
- "Look at Fridays like weekends," he wrote in an email announcing the change, to the delight of his 12 employees. (One must be on-call each week, on a rotating schedule.)
- "Oh my god, I was so happy," says Nick Wehner, a software engineer at the company. Wehner said he's been amazed at how much faster he can work using AI.
Kirkness tells Axios that using AI accelerates writing code but it doesn't speed up everything — teams still need to be able to think creatively to solve problems and get real work done.
- The four-day workweek is meant to keep everyone fresh, with enough time to recharge so they can do deep-thinking.
"(Nearly) all that matters in work moving forward is the maximization of creativity, human judgment, emotional intelligence, prompting skills and deeply understanding a customer domain," he wrote in his all-staff email.
- "None of those things correlate with hours."
- The intention behind working fewer hours is to enable deeper, more productive work — it's an idea also touted by New Yorker writer Cal Newport in his book last year, Slow Productivity.
The bottom line: A growing chorus argues that workers should actually benefit from AI rather than just live in fear of it.
