my work uses two different 4 day setups. we run 24/7/365 coverage. one shift is either 10 hour/day Sun-Weds or Weds-Sat, the other setup is a rolling 10 hour/day 4 days on, 4 days off. One gets you a consistent schedule, but you’re regularly working a weekend day. The other is less consistent (work days cycle back around every few weeks) but you’re for sure to get full weekends now and then.
Where I live (Germany) 40h is the legal maximum.
Edit: actually 48h/w is the legal maximum, but 8h/d. Exceptions per day only if you can average it out to 8h over time. Edit over.
Although many workplaces have that, there are countless employers who offer 38,5h 37,5h or 35h weeks. 35h is, for example, union standard for the metal industry union.
So gunning for anything less than an 8:45h day would be a step back.
I don’t care because there’s no real difference between 8h and 10h. Your whole day is basically gone either way. I don’t care if I’m working 8h or 12h. That extra 4 hours doesn’t make a difference. I’d rather have full days to set personal life goals and enjoy life than have to squeeze it in after work.
4x10 with a three day weekend was the best schedule I ever worked - before I had kids.
Now, if I had to start an hour earlier and end an hour later, I wouldn’t be able to drop my kids off at school or coach their sports teams and lead their Cub Scouts pack after.
I used to do 12-hour shifts, 8:00 p.m. to 8:00 a.m. The other shift did the 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. shift then every shift alternated Monday to Friday and then Wednesday to Sunday- the average employee at that company lasted 7 months. Absolutely insane, completely unnecessary, but the company couldn’t be bothered to change.
That prison from Andor, that would have been an improvement.
If you don’t mind me asking what industry? Sounds like security?
It would be cool seeing the same guy at the start and end of the day for 4 days straight, and them seeing you. The overlap from arriving a few minutes early would make for an interesting comradery.
The problem with the job, other than the hours, is unless you actually like your coworkers to the point you want to sleep with them, you end up wanting to strangle them every time they do even the slightest little bit thing wrong.
Humans are not meant to spend so much time together.
Also people resent it when the security team do their job. Inevitably criminals try break into businesses in the middle of the night, and no one likes being woken up to be told this, despite the fact we’ve been explicitly told to tell them. Then they take the best part of 3 hours to get to the office/factory to meet the police, who then get grumpy that they have to stand around and wait.
So you hate your co-workers, you don’t get enough sleep, you never see the sun, the police hate you, your employers hate you for doing your job, and you can get fired at a moment’s notice for missing even the slightest thing.
my work uses two different 4 day setups. we run 24/7/365 coverage. one shift is either 10 hour/day Sun-Weds or Weds-Sat, the other setup is a rolling 10 hour/day 4 days on, 4 days off. One gets you a consistent schedule, but you’re regularly working a weekend day. The other is less consistent (work days cycle back around every few weeks) but you’re for sure to get full weekends now and then.
I don’t think cramming a 40h week into 4 days is what a 4 day work week wants to accomplish.
I’m not a business owner and have no employees but four 10 hour days is likely an easier sell to those who are those things than four 8 hour days.
Where I live (Germany) 40h is the legal maximum. Edit: actually 48h/w is the legal maximum, but 8h/d. Exceptions per day only if you can average it out to 8h over time. Edit over.
Although many workplaces have that, there are countless employers who offer 38,5h 37,5h or 35h weeks. 35h is, for example, union standard for the metal industry union.
So gunning for anything less than an 8:45h day would be a step back.
There are plenty of people with more than 40h/w contracts in Germany. The legal max is still 48 h/w.
My bad then. I thought 48h/w was only the max for emergency workers.
I don’t care because there’s no real difference between 8h and 10h. Your whole day is basically gone either way. I don’t care if I’m working 8h or 12h. That extra 4 hours doesn’t make a difference. I’d rather have full days to set personal life goals and enjoy life than have to squeeze it in after work.
This depends so much on individual circumstances.
4x10 with a three day weekend was the best schedule I ever worked - before I had kids.
Now, if I had to start an hour earlier and end an hour later, I wouldn’t be able to drop my kids off at school or coach their sports teams and lead their Cub Scouts pack after.
Ooops, I was only thinking about my own personal circumstances as a young adult who is single and new to full time employment.
Yeah, I assumed as much.
That’s why I figured I may as well throw out another perspective.
This is a great way to give everyone burnout, mess up their personal life because they’re missing a weekend day, and ruin performance for the company.
The company is trying to get the best of both worlds but they’ll end up doing the complete opposite
Both of those options sound terrible.
I used to do 12-hour shifts, 8:00 p.m. to 8:00 a.m. The other shift did the 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. shift then every shift alternated Monday to Friday and then Wednesday to Sunday- the average employee at that company lasted 7 months. Absolutely insane, completely unnecessary, but the company couldn’t be bothered to change.
That prison from Andor, that would have been an improvement.
If you don’t mind me asking what industry? Sounds like security?
It would be cool seeing the same guy at the start and end of the day for 4 days straight, and them seeing you. The overlap from arriving a few minutes early would make for an interesting comradery.
Yeah security, watching CCTV cameras.
The problem with the job, other than the hours, is unless you actually like your coworkers to the point you want to sleep with them, you end up wanting to strangle them every time they do even the slightest little bit thing wrong.
Humans are not meant to spend so much time together.
Also people resent it when the security team do their job. Inevitably criminals try break into businesses in the middle of the night, and no one likes being woken up to be told this, despite the fact we’ve been explicitly told to tell them. Then they take the best part of 3 hours to get to the office/factory to meet the police, who then get grumpy that they have to stand around and wait.
So you hate your co-workers, you don’t get enough sleep, you never see the sun, the police hate you, your employers hate you for doing your job, and you can get fired at a moment’s notice for missing even the slightest thing.
You can’t sleep with them because you have to work while they sleep and they work when you sleep if it’s 12 on 12 off