4-day workweeks can boost efficiency, say North Bay employers, recruiters

CHERYL SARFATY / THE NORTH BAY BUSINESS JOURNAL

Monica Ravizza loves her job as director of programs at ExtraFood, a Marin County nonprofit that feeds the hungry. But these days, she’s happier than ever.

That’s because the organization has transitioned from the traditional five-day, 40-hour workweek to a four-day, 32-hour schedule.

“That three days off a week really recharges my batteries so that come Monday, I am fully sourced and energized … because I know I’m going to push for four days, and then I can breathe again,” said Ravizza, who has worked at ExtraFood for three years. “And that really works well for me.”

It became clear more than two years ago that in order to operate efficiently, ExtraFood needed to change its work schedule, according to Executive Director Will Dittmar. The 501(c)(3) nonprofit operates every day of the year to recover excess fresh food from businesses, schools and gardens, and quickly deliver it to people in Marin and Sonoma counties facing food insecurity.

“We were not able to retain a weekend coordinator for really longer than half a year at best, and that had a serious impact on our operations on weekends and holidays,” Dittmar said, adding the position was part time and isolated from the rest of the company. “We have an army of volunteers and dedicated drivers who really come to expect a consistent level of service and if you’re constantly having to retrain somebody … then operations can, and was, suffering.”

The solution was to cross-train all staff and have them rotate working weekends and holidays as part of a four-day work schedule, Dittmar said. That change also meant employees with institutional knowledge were working directly with the volunteers and drivers, which stabilized weekend operations.

The four-day workweek is optional, and none of ExtraFood’s 13 staffers have elected to keep working five days a week, Dittmar said.

‘Able to get your work done’

There is one caveat.

“We’ve always put results-based accountability with that change. So any new employee, for example, knows that this is the policy that we have,” Dittmar said. “The idea being that if you’re not able to get your work done, then we will need to have a conversation about whether the four-day workweek can continue for you.”

Because ExtraFood’s employees are salaried, there was no impact to their income by dropping from 40 hours a week to 32 hours, according to Dittmar.

For companies with hourly employees, the four-day workweek at this point in time would mean working 10 hours a day to keep the same pay, a format that has gotten mixed reactions from employers because of concerns about overtime and productivity levels, according to multiple reports.

Four-day workweeks, also known as alternative workweeks, have been around for a while, but the initiative has been gaining momentum, said Mark Berry, a Northern California-based senior human resource specialist with Insperity, a Houston-headquartered human resources services provider.

“There is proposed legislation from (California) senators that may make it a lot easier to have flexible workweeks for hourly nonexempt employees,” said Berry. “If any of that passes, either as written or amended, I think it’ll be that much easier for employers to implement. … If they wanted to do it today in California, it’s quite rigorous. It’s easy to get wrong.”

Berry is also a member of the Society for Human Resource Management, known as SHRM, and had recently returned from the association’s annual conference, which includes discussions of proposed legislation. The Alexandria, Virginia-based SHRM has more than 300,000 members and is the largest in the world, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.

Berry said “one fundamentally important piece” for employers considering a four-day workweek is to include employees in the decision before rolling it out.

“Ask for their candid feedback and sentiment, and then have an all-hands meeting and focus group to discuss what came out of that so it’s not a complete surprise,” he said. “That way, employees feel they have a little bit of skin in the game or input into that.”

Recruitment and retention, operational efficiencies, burnout and work-life balance are key factors employers take into consideration when deciding whether to move away from the traditional five-day workweek.

Many employers say they are exploring it

The numbers tell the story, according to Robert Half, a Menlo Park-based employment agency with more than 300 offices across the country.

“We did a survey that looked at four-day workweeks, and we found 9 in 10, or 93% (of employers), support the four-day workweek with their team,” said Terah Brossart Daniels, market director for the recruitment firm’s San Francisco Bay Area locations. “And actually, 64% of them anticipated that they and their company will transition to one in the next five years.”

Findings among workers also proved compelling, she said.

“Eight in 10 workers say they’d even be willing to do four 10-hour workdays in exchange for that extra day off and that three-day weekend,” Brossart Daniels said. “So it’s pretty resounding.”

Canal Alliance, a Latino-services nonprofit in Marin County, adopted a four-day work schedule earlier this year in an effort to prioritize employee wellness, according to Johanna Schleret, chief human resources officer.

Canal Alliance offers immigration legal services, education and career programs, and social services to help Latino immigrants and their families overcome barriers to success, according to the 501(c)(3) nonprofit.

“The four-day workweek, to us, is a solution to a problem that I think is not unique to Canal Alliance,” Schleret said. “It became more obvious after COVID that people are burned out, it is really hard to retain talent, and it is really hard to attract talent.”

Like ExtraFood, Canal Alliance started the effort as a pilot program — with no change in salaries — before making it permanent. Canal Alliance’s trial started in February and was permanently instituted in May.

“The four-day workweek concept that we use, and a lot of other organizations use, is 100% of the pay and benefits, and 80% of the time with a commitment to have the same 100% outcome as before,” Schleret said.

Unlike ExtraFood, there is no opt-out to working four days for the organization that employs 120 people.

‘Not just about running faster’

Changes also were made to Canal Alliance’s work culture, she said.

“We added a lot of transparency so everyone has all the information that they need, and visibility and accountability,” Schleret said. “We really emphasize this is not about just running faster and doing everything in 32 hours, but to actually focus on what is important and what is going to generate the outcome that we want to see.”

So far, so good.

Over a three-month period of 2024 compared to the same period of 2023, Canal Alliance saw interest in open positions increase nearly 300% and turnover drop by half, according to Schleret.

The shortened workweek also means staff schedules are staggered, and that benefits the San Rafael-based organization’s clients. The front doors are now open continuously from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Thursday, an increase from 32 client hours to 40, according to Canal Alliance.

For Ravizza, of ExtraFood, the change in work schedule has also deepened her commitment to the organization.

“My mental health and work-life balance is so good,” Ravizza said, adding a friend told her about “a great position” at another nonprofit organization that she should apply for. “I said, ‘No way. I work four days a week, I love my boss, I love the organization and I’m not leaving.’”

Cheryl Sarfaty covers tourism, hospitality, health care and employment. Reach her at cheryl.sarfaty@busjrnl.com or 707-521-4259.