We’re witnessing a global shift in the way we work and what people expect from their employer. Hybrid, remote and flexible working remain on the tip of most employees’ proverbial lips. Whilst these terms are open to interpretation depending on the context and disparities in business culture, the latest stats demonstrate that this is an initiative that isn’t going away.
In an industry which is famed for its unsociable working hours and lack of work-life balance, one agency is on a mission to challenge the status quo.
Leeds based event staffing agency, Eventure, is believed to be the first agency in the event space to trial the 4-day work week. Established mid-pandemic in 2020, when most other agencies in the event space were furloughing their employees, Founder Charli Briggs, was on a mission to set up an event staffing agency like no other.
“Having worked in the event space for years, I kept witnessing the same issues. This is when I decided to form a new type of staffing agency and place people at the heart of the business,” explains Charli.
“At Eventure, we pride ourselves on brand matching the right people to the role and the event.”
With their Eventurers and people team forming a key part of the value proposition, Eventure mandated that the wellbeing of employees is a core value of the business. Not only that, but their results prove that investing in the health and wellbeing of their people leads to a prosperous business, with increased productivity, an energised workforce, and a happy client base.
Moving to a 4-day work week follows a line of other benefits and initiatives that has led to Eventure winning numerous industry and business awards. However, this initiative is undoubtedly the most profound.
Although it is becoming more widely acknowledged, the notion of a 4-day work week has existed for a while. Iceland is often cited for its 4-year trial between 2015-2019, where 2,500 people reduced their working hours from forty to thirty-two, without a salary cutback. The trial resulted in take-up by 86% of the national workforce, with the remainder gaining the option to reduce hours if they hadn’t already.
There are further trials taking place around the world currently, with big brands – including Unilever – recently announcing that they are extending their trial to 500 further employees, as recently as November 1 st 2022.
The official 4-day work week trial, organised by 4 Day Week Global, is due to conclude in December 2022. Formed of a coalition of business leaders and strategists, the movement exists to encourage everyone (businesses and leaders alike) to play their part in creating a new way of working. The focus is on improving business productivity, worker health, stronger families and communities, alongside challenging gender inequality and working towards a more sustainable work environment.
As part of their trial, Eventure employees will work reduced hours – rather than compressing their existing working hours, into fewer days – and they will retain 100% of their salary.
Charli comments: “If we can find better ways of working that will make our people and business happier and more productive, why wouldn’t we try it? We’re on a mission to improve work-life balance alongside improving our service delivery to clients. We have realised that the 4-day working week doesn’t mean the business has to close. We will be staggering days off with mixed teams to ensure the business continues to operate with zero disruption to clients or Eventurers.”
Initial feedback from employees at the agency has been overwhelmingly positive with most people commenting on how they’re looking forward to having extra time to pursue their own interests and personal development, which will ultimately benefit the business.
“Eventure has always made me feel like a valued member of the team but the latest announcement of our move to a trial of the 4-day working week has confirmed it. I’m energised to give more and deliver even better results for the business and our clients. I also think that having time away from our desks will help us to think more creatively, which will feed into our solutions focused approach to working with clients,” comments Sasha Green, Senior Account Executive.
Eventure will kick off their trial of the 4-day work week In January. Follow their journey: http://www.eventureexp.co.uk | @eventure_exp