Pure play cloud-native service provider Civo has announced it is permanently adopting a four-day working week, following a successful trial across the business.
The tech start-up has been on a four-day work schedule since the close of last year, with the firm stating that its staff embrace the scheme alongside other flexible-working patterns.
Building on its own successful trial of a reduced work week, Civo employees will now be working a week totalling 34 hours, split over a four-day period with 8.5 hours a day.
“Having an extra day off really helps to alleviate pressures from inside and outside work,” said Ian Banks, a site reliability engineer at Civo. “I can spend more time with my kids, get on with chores that could previously take up a whole Saturday or go for a walk and decompress. I would not be surprised to see a reduced work week become the norm in the not-so-distant future.”
Civo said it is seeking new ways to improve staff well-being, as the business looks to retain and attract talent in the competitive tech sector. In the coming months, Civo’s four-day working week will be added to with trials of other flexible working policies
“The experience of the last two years has changed how businesses think about the needs of employees forever,” said Mark Boost, CEO of Civo. “Looking after employee welfare and mental health is no longer seen as a ‘nice-to-have’, but a fundamental aspect of a successful business model, and rightly so.
“Our adoption of the four-day work week came from the belief that by streamlining the working week, we could create a more productive and ultimately more successful organisation. Teams are more engaged and motivated, and crucially from a business perspective, we have seen no drop in the quality of work delivered.”
The decision comes at a time when there is growing evidence of the benefits of the scheme, within both professional and academic circles. In the UK, a total of 3,000 employees at 60 different companies will soon embark on the largest four-day week trial to date, running from June to December 2022.
