ABSTRACT
This chapter proceeds by reviewing the evidence concerning motivation, based on studies of the compressed four-day, 40-hour workweek. S. Ronen and S. Primps reviewed more than a dozen studies of a compressed workweek during the 1970s. They found that in most of the studies, workers claimed greater job satisfaction once the four-day workweek was implemented. R. Bird cites a number of additional 1970s studies that found that employee satisfaction diminished over time as the four-day, 40-hour workweek continued. The level of satisfaction was never lower than before the implementation of the compressed four-day workweek, but it was generally less strongly positive than just after implementation. A number of US companies have moved to four-day, reduced-hours workweeks, with generally positive outcomes in terms of both motivation and productivity. The CEO, Jason Fried, claims that the company has produced results during those months equal to the results during the winter months, when the traditional five-day, 40-hour schedule is followed.
