Written by Dorinda So, Executive Director, pointA
International HR consulting firm Robert Half found in its 2025 Canada Salary Guide that across all generations, the #1 perk that employees want is flexible work schedules, followed by remote work options, with 34% of Canadian workers surveyed stating that they don’t want to look for a new job because they don’t want to give up their current flexible work schedule.
Interestingly, about 44% of Canadian workers prefer a hybrid schedule with 2-3 days in the office and the rest at home while most employers would prefer 4 days of working in office instead. To square this difference, one option is for employers to consider offering a four-day workweek. This is not necessarily a new phenomenon but the global pandemic spurred conversations about this and every year, new conversations about a four-day workweek arise, especially as the 4 Day Week Global, an organization running a number of trials worldwide, release reports on the success of their pilots. Organizations from law firms to police to tech firms have routinely trialed the four-day workweek and the results are usually positive.
pointA is releasing its four-day workweek report, Shifting the workweek: Why Ontario Businesses Should Consider a Four-Day Model and while the results are applicable not just for Ontario businesses but across Canada, the report outlines the following:
- The business case for a four-day workweek
- The economic and environmental case for a four-day workweek
- The health and well-being case for a four workweek
- How to implement a four-day workweek
Using research from successful pilots across the country, we offer recommendations on how to implement a four-day workweek so that your organization can use this as a way to attract and retain talent, which continues to be a difficult challenge for HR departments. The Robert Half 2025 Salary Guide found that employers were looking to offer hybrid work (39%) and flexible work schedules (37%) as ways to attract more candidates.
Even if your organization is not looking to fully implement a four-day workweek or the preparations reveal gaps and hurdles, there are many benefits of at least considering how your organization can create flexible workplaces that are inclusive of many different types of workers and how to build in contingencies and processes that will ultimately help the organization. For example, one of the biggest most helpful conversations for employers to is consider the total rewards (benefits and perks) package that is currently being offered to employees. A four-day workweek may be great for specific groups of workers, but not all may want this, especially if it will create more stress from delivering work within four days instead of five. It may be better to offer other monetary benefits such as a retirement savings plan rather than a four-day workweek.
Organizations can also consider alternative working arrangements, of which a four-day week is just one. Remote work and flexible working hours are another two but there are much more and employers can explore all of them, their pros and cons to consider what works best for them. Click here to read a summary of the alternative working arrangements. We’ve also created a version for employees so that they can be supported in the transition of these arrangements, including how to plan for their commutes. The posts above have links to handy PDF guides for both employers and employees as they consider how to implement each of these arrangements to maximize the benefits to all.
Alternative working arrangements like a four-day workweek can help organizations with their return to office mandates. If you need further information or assistance, pointA can help you determine the best alternative working arrangements that work best for your team. Contact us today to learn more.
