Limit to flexible week

A FOUR-day work week is unlikely to set Cairns ablaze unless it is driven from the top, research says.

The concept has had recent success in New Zealand when trialled by white-collar company Perpetual Guardian, which found productivity and motivation rose.

From next month its employees can choose to work just four days a week for regular five-day pay.

But Cairns workplace and business experts suggest that sceptical companies in the Far North would take a ‘wait and see’ approach.

JCU’s Dr Carolyn Timms has researched flexible workplace arrangements and said a four-day week was dependant on dynamic leadership.

“The idea of a four-day week will work really well in workplaces where people get a lot of meaning out of their work,” Dr Timms said.

“(But) I found that management and bosses don’t take notice – we are finding that management don’t want to hear about it.”

She speculated that companies who had successfully trialled the four-day week were driven by inspirational leaders.

Dr Timms said the ideal boss to drive the shortened week was “a really dynamic individual who’s capable of inspiring their work force”.

“It is more of a white-collar type arrangement because we can’t have it in place for the service industries or nursing and teaching,” she said.

Cairns Chamber of Commerce president Nick Loukas said the concept could work if employers and employees both received benefits from the flexible conditions.

“It is a long-running debate – obviously from the business point of view anything that is good for business and for the employee is beneficial.

“It may work for shift work … but it has to be beneficial for the employer as well.”

Flexible work arrangements are currently overseen by the Fair Work Ombudsman for select categories of employees.