The Maharashtra government on February 12 announced five-day working week for its officers and employees from February 29. The decision was taken at the state Cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray.
There are over 20 lakh officers and employees in government, semi-government and local bodies in Maharashtra.
A lot of private companies have reduced their working days from six to five in a week. A few of the organisations have even tried four working days a week and observed a gradual rise in productivity.
Latest in the line was Microsoft. The company in its Japan office in August practised a four-day work-week experiment. The American multinational found that employees were happier and more productive.
The project called â Work-Life Choice Challenge Summer 2018 gave Microsoft Japan’s entire workforce of 2,300 people five Fridays off in a row without decreasing pay.
Throughout the month it was found that the meetings were more efficient, workers were happier, and the productivity rose by 40 per cent.
Last year, a company with 240 staff members in New Zeland tried a four day work week over two months. After the trial, employees reported that there was an improvement in their work-life balance.
Multiple studies conducted in the past have said that with lesser work time, workers have proved to be more productive.
A survey over 1,500 employees and 600 human resource managers conducted by Robert Half, an HR consulting firm found out that 66 per cent of the employees thought they could finish their work within five hours of the day.
Also Read: Microsoft Japan Reduced Working Days To 4, Productivity Jumps 40%
