To think 'Full time' should mean less hours?

It would definitely make employees happier but there is no incentive for employers to do it, the job market is terrible at the moment so organisations can pay a shit wage while maintaining the same working hours and still have hundreds of applications for every vacancy.

I think some people’s response to stagnant wages has been to “quiet quit”, which is effectively the same. Doing less work for the same money. I know people who take all their sick days every year, effectively increasing their annual leave/reducing the number of weeks worked. Others spend time on their side hustle while WFH for their main hustle, to increase earnings.

Workers have woken up to the fact that they are dispensable to their employer and increasingly find ways to claw back what they’re not getting (i.e. sufficient pay rises).

Isn’t there a strange effect when this has been tried productivity doesn’t actually go down ?

I guess healthier less stressed employees would perform better

won’t work of course because the bosses aren’t that bright

That’s what you call getting a good work-life balance, but as the previous poster has already said, there is no way that employers would go for that.

How will that work for doctors/ nurses / teachers etc where hours are majorly busy and not enough to cover the work anyway?

I can do all my work in about one day a week, it’s actually surprisingly draining given that I have to still be there the rest of the time.

But people arent happy

you being “people”?

and your idea sucks. Less output means the business struggles more

God that sounds so boring

I think it would be great if full time was a 30 hour week, with job adverts showing the salary for that. If more hours available by negotiation then roles could be advertised accordingly but would not be compulsory.
I think 30 hours would help get more people back into work as some people cant cope with 40 hour weeks and getting part time work these days seems hard unless you’re already in a role.
I know there are lots of barriers to it happening, but I think it’d be a great idea.

I’m sure this approach doesn’t impact productivity. As pp said I think people are pissed off now so put less effort in anyway.

Output wouldn't be lower in a lot of roles. There's evidence out there that shows people are more productive doing a 30 hour week over 4 days.
I think the LA should be leading the way in implementing a 4 day working week.

Sure
and I’d expect the salary to be reduced accordingly to save tax payers money

I think you mean you’d like seven hours left to cook and exercise ? I mean fair enough, but it’s not going to happen, I’m sorry

You are paid for the hours you work. You might dislike the amount but purposefully going slow or not working to your best in the end shows on you. As there will be others who don’t do that.
You are trying to justify being lazy.

A couple of council’s have discussed moving to a 4 day week for 5 day pay.
It’s a way of trying to retain or attract staff when wages they can pay aren’t competitive.
We really struggle to recruit and retain in my area as private sector pay far more and lots of local government perks like wfh are now in private sector too. Talking around £20,000 difference in pay.
There’s also the issue that lowest paid now get national living wage where I work as it’s a council commitment. This has meant there’s virtually no difference between wages for bottom 3 or 4 grades. In practice it means cleaner and the supervisor who has to train people, sort rotas are on same wage.
Cleaner and some people in my team with degrees doing complex work are on under £1 an hour difference. A colleague has applied for and got a demotion as money wise it’s virtually same and his work life will be so much easier at lower grade.

This is why quiet quitting exists

Some companies already do this. I know Joe Wicks’ company is one of them, his staff work 32 hours over 4 days in addition to an hour lunch break and an hour exercise break each day. Lucy and Yak is another I think.

https://www.scambs.gov.uk/four-day-working-week

This council explains their reasons.
They call it a scheduled rest day and suggest people are using it for volunteering, caring or personal well being.

I do think it has merit. I loved working 4 days a week (only got 4 days pay) but it felt a better balance.

How will using AI make it more environmentally friendly?!

You don’t say the area you work in but most public sector areas are dealing with excess demand and real term budget cuts- AI I already seen a the answer in managing the gap between capacity and demand.

And who decides which jobs get to have reduced hours- fancy one day a week with no A&E, no fire service, no prison guards?

You’d be better off job hunting this weekend than dreaming about something your employer is patently not going to introduce

My employer did this, only to 35 hours. It brought the lower earners salary above the real living wage in doing so.

There have been several trials of a 4 day working week, 28/30 hours for no reduction in pay, and it’s always resulted in a more motivated, more productive workforce. YANBU

I've been working 9-3 hours a week for 12 years but will be going full time again soon. I am not looking forward to it. I genuinely think being at a desk 37 hours a week will crap up my already problematic back and knees, give me more migraines from the screen, and could mean we eat less well as a family although I'll try my best. I know 37 is normal but I just think it's too much. 4 days a week would be ideal.