4/40, 9/80?

[Miss Neecerie]

Anyone have experience with these alternate work week things?

We are being given the choice at work, and I would just like some stories, opinions etc. from folks who have -done- this.


Pretty please with sugar on top, and maybe some caramel sauce too, DON'T just say 'A 40 hour week is -traditional- and gripe without any basis at the universe changing'.....


Actual -informed- anecdotes only please.

 

[Paisley]

I did the 9/80 a few years ago. I liked having Friday afternoons off. Nine-hour days never felt any longer to me than 8-hour days.

 

[Brad Bowers]

It all depends on the person and the hours.

Back in the early '90s I worked the 4/40 schedule in retail, 10 AM - 8 PM. I'm not an early riser, so for four days a week, it seemed like I got up, went to work, came home, and by the time I had supper, it was time to go back to bed. There didn't seem like any time to do all the everyday kinds of things with that schedule. It was nice having three days off, though, which is a nice benefit, but I seemed to spend it getting done the things I didn't get done throughout the week.

But that was just me. If you're industrious, it would probably be easy to squeeze all the daily things into two hours' less time. I just couldn't get it done.

One place where the extra day off in the week is really handy is when there are places you need to go that are only open during the week, like the DMV.

Brad

 

[Harp]

My prior employment (federal law enforcement) typically involved
a seven-day work week: leave apartment at eight am and arrive back
at midnight, with occasional all-nighters thrown in for fun.
I enjoyed my work, so the time/shift issue never bothered me.
However, I had a reputation for being a non-team player maverick,
and the brass and I had it out. I was allowed to resign and it was a
friendly divorce with handshakes and best wishes but I found myself
blackballed from other federal investigative work, so I'm now in an
office riding a 9-to-5 clock for a flat 40 hour week. lol

 

[Copper]

I am in law enforcement, but in a specialist investigative role. I work 10 hour shifts, normally Monday to Thursday, 0700 - 1700h. I quite like it myself, though I have the freedom to self adjust my schedule. 4 on 3 off works well for me, though I have worked variations on this theme... I have to adjust my schedule frequently though and still find the shifting to be pretty accomodating.

Prior to this when I was on patrol duties I worked an 80 hour/2 week schedule which gave me 4 -5 10 hour days on shift with 2 - 5 days off shift.

 

[Moby]

I work for a large aerospace company in Florida. We went to a 9/80 week a few years ago. I like it. I'm and early bird so I get into work at 6:00 am, with 1/2 hr for lunch so I usually leave the office by 3:30. I wouldn't like it if I arrived at the office at 9:00am and had to stay at work until 6:30.

Leaving at 3:30 pm gives me time to go to the car parts store or whatever before they close or enough daylight to cut the grass. It is very nice to have every other Friday off. If you have a liberal vacation plan, you can take almost every other Friday as a vacation day and combined with the usual holidays almost never work on Fridays.

 

[Andykev]

Yes...

We do the 4/9.5 Monday thru Thurdsay with one 8 hour "training day" every months during the FLSA cycle.

Weekend shift is 3/12.5 Fri-Sat-Sun with a 10 hour monthly training day.

So you either get a three day weekend EVERY week, or a four day weekend EVERY week (except the one day you do training).

Best thing they ever came up with. Morale is great.

 

[K.D. Lightner]

We had the choice of 10/40 and 9/80 in San Diego County back in the 90's. Many people jumped on the bandwago and went 10/40, including me. Others tried the 1/2 day off on Fridays or every other Friday off.

As our lunch hours were on us, that meant you had to be there 11 hours, 10 to work and an hour for lunch. Or you could do a half-hour for lunch and do a 10 1/2 hour day.

Some loved it and remained on it and, for all I know, are still on it. Others backed off fast. Some reasons they couldn't do it:

1. People with kids at home who need to be supervised or are in childcare. Those long, long days in daycare were hard on the little kids, not being there to supervise older children or teens proved too much for the parents.

2. If you love the outdoors, remember that part of the year you are going to get up in the dark and come home in the dark. It messes with your head.

3. Older people, the 45-plus group, found it hard to maintain a 10-hour work day. It was wearing and many backed off and went back to the simple 8 hour workday. I was so tired after those four long work days, I found I was sleeping until noon on my day off just to catch up.

4. Administrators didn't like it because when people work 10 hours a day, they usually don't work any more hours than they did when they worked 8 hours. Time gets frittered away.

People who had plenty of things to do outdoors and/or lots of chores and errands to run seemed to like it best. Most people chose Monday or Friday off so they always had a 3-day weekend, and four days when there were holidays. Two people I know chose to take Wednesdays off -- one liked doing errands midweek, and one guy said, "I look at it this way, Karol: I never have to work more that two days in a row!"

karol

 

[Rosie]

I run education programs that run on days there is no school, winter recess, spring recess, etc. On these days, I have a 10 or 10+ hour day. Personally, I don't like it. I feel as though all I'm doing is working. Even with the extra day off on Fridays, it just feels as though I'm playing catch up on sleep.

However, my cousin has been doing the 4/40 thing for a few years now and it really works for her. I guess it depends on the person.

 

[jayem]

I work full time, but my hours aren't set in stone like above. Sometimes I pull 11 or 14 hour days, sometimes 5 hours. After 7 days though, it always comes out to 40 hours. Tuesdays are my 8 hour days, Wednesdays usually 14, Thursday tends to be 6, Friday is usually 5, and Saturday is 7. I have Sundays and Mondays off. Wednesdays so suck though, because I get to work at 6am, and leave at 8pm. There's no designated work lunches or breaks at my work, and we sit down and relax whenever its not busy. I've got to say, having the flex hours at my work really helps a lot, because as long as I get my stuff done, I can usually come in an hour earlier and leave one earlier, or vice versa if need be.

 

[Fleur De Guerre]

Until our new MD joined a few months ago, we used to get "Summer and Christmas working hours" whereby throughout July and August, and through December we could have half day on Friday if we'd done all our (35) hours. But the new MD ditched it saying he was tring to bring us in line with 'other big companies'. How rubbish. Other big companies do flexi-time, why can't we? What a git!

However, we are harbouring hopes that he will decide to shut the company down over Christmas instead, which would actually make more sense, give we're a publishers.

 

[Sunny]

I think Moby and I have the same story. Large company, went to 9/80 schedule roughly 5 years ago. I've been here 2 1/2 years and my father 20; as far as I can tell, everyone loves it. It does make for slightly longer days, but that's really not a biggie. Those three-day weekends are wonderful for getting other stuff done, too. I do best with large blocks of time.

 

[LuketheLurker]

Wow! I envy you people. Since the middle of February, I have been working 12 hour shifts 7 days a week. With the exception of the vacation I took last week, I have only had 3 days off during that period ( the company I work for throws us an occasional Saturday off to keep us content). To think a Friday off, that would be grand!

 

[Undertow]

Let me be honest about the 4/40 weeks...

I loved them! I wish I could get back on that boat. I had Fridays off, I saved money on gas, I was able to actually get things done during the week, etc.

But of course it depends on your job. I didn't mind the extra hours because, heck, I was already there and I didn't have to put up with an entirely seperate day at the office.

And there's nothing better than have 3-day weekends every weekend.

I say go for it.

 

[Miss Neecerie]

Let me be honest about the 4/40 weeks...

I loved them! I wish I could get back on that boat. I had Fridays off, I saved money on gas, I was able to actually get things done during the week, etc.

But of course it depends on your job. I didn't mind the extra hours because, heck, I was already there and I didn't have to put up with an entirely seperate day at the office.

And there's nothing better than have 3-day weekends every weekend.

I say go for it.

Yea....gas is a factor in this choice..I drive 75 miles a day round trip to get to the office.....

Thanks for the opinions about all of this...they are still organizing it all...so might be a little while before it starts....

 

[Baron Kurtz]

4 day week would be a dream. Less than 70 hours a week would be heaven! Oh well, i chose it …

Anyway, my Ma says she hated moving to a 4 day week and so switched back to regular asap. She didn't elaborate.

bk

 

[Tango Yankee]

My wife allegedely works a 4/40 hour week, but since she volunteered to be trained as an audit manager she's working 5/50 for the same pay. :eusa_doh:

She likes the three days off each week, but the long days take their toll. She often doesn't have much energy left at the end of the day. Part of that is the fact that she often has to drive quite a ways to get to wherever the audit is, assuming it's within the drive time to not require her to stay there overnight. They do credit her with some of her drive time, though, and consider it part of the 10 hours. Her lunch is on her, so she can decide if she's taking a 1/2 hour or full hour for lunch and leave accordingly.

The lack of energy sometimes carries over into the weekends. Having Friday off means we can take off on Friday to head out of town for family stuff Friday morning--a lot better than hitting the road after work Friday evening!

I wouldn't mind such a schedule (I don't think, anyway) should I ever find full-time work again.

Regards,
Tom