Listening

Warm Up

Helpful Words and Phrases

Listen and repeat.

  1. come to an end
    • ex. After almost 3 years, this project has finally come to an end. Great job, everyone!
  2. revenue
    • ex. Our revenue decreased in 2020 because we had to close most of our stores.
  3. productivity
    • ex. When we stopped having long meetings, our productivity increased.
  4. prove
    • ex. I can’t prove that Jim ate the last cookie, but I believe he did.
  5. overwhelmed
    • ex. If I start to feel overwhelmed at work, I usually go outside and take a quick walk.

Article

Read the article below and answer your tutor's questions.

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The world’s largest pilot program for a four-day workweek recently came to an end, and the results were clear: A shorter workweek is good! According to 4 Day Week Global, the nonprofit organization that arranged the pilot, average revenue was 38% higher than the same period in 2021. Employees reported better mental and physical health, and most companies said that they want to continue the four-day workweek.

Over 180 companies in the UK, US, New Zealand, Australia, Ireland, and Canada participated in the six-month pilot program. During the pilot, employees worked only 32 hours a week. However, they still received 100% of their salary in exchange for trying to keep 100% of their productivity. Joe O’Connor, CEO of 4 Day Week Global, said that the pilot proved that employees can work “shorter and smarter.”

Not every company found success in the pilot, and about 20% quit. O’Connor explained that more than half of them actually quit during the pre-planning stage. They tried to fix every possible issue before the program started, so their management became overwhelmed. At successful companies, process improvements were usually made by workers, not management.

Discussion

Choose a topic and discuss the questions with your tutor.

Four-Day Workweeks

  • Would you like to have a four-day workweek? Why or why not? Discuss.
  • In Japan, some companies have switched to a four-day workweek but still require 40 hours (10 hours per day). What do you think about this (ex. reasonable, unfair)? Why? Discuss.
  • Imagine that your company changed to a four-day workweek. Do you want to work Monday-Thursday or Tuesday-Friday? Why? Discuss.

Productivity

  • Do you agree that it's possible to keep the same level of productivity with a 32-hour workweek? Why or why not? Discuss.
  • In your opinion, how can companies increase productivity (ex. stop having long meetings, set clear priorities)? Why? Discuss.
  • Some companies have stopped monitoring work hours and only monitor productivity (outputs). Do you think this is a good idea? Why or why not? Discuss.