Challenger bank Atom has made a four-day working week permanent after a successful trial over the past year.
In November 2021, the app-based bank introduced a four-day working week for its then 430 employees, with no change on salaries. This came after flexible working, introduced during the Covid-19 lockdown, proved a success.
Now, the bank has made the new working arrangement a company policy after a successful year where it hit its business targets.
Anne-Marie Lister, chief people officer at Durham-based Atom, said: “Moving to a four-day week has not been without its difficulties, however, it is one of the most transformative things we’ve done as a company.
“Since we launched our trial in November 2021, we have not only seen a more productive, healthier, and – crucially – happier workforce, but our customer service metrics are at record highs and more people are looking to start a career with Atom. It took a lot of planning, communication and listening to make it work, but having started out as a pilot, we have now confirmed the new working structure into people’s contracts.”
In the past 12 months, Atom has grown its total customer base by 80,000 in 2022, up 77% on 2021. The bank said savings balances are up 96% to over £5bn.
In June this year, more than 3,000 workers at 60 companies began a coordinated, six-month trial of a four-day working week in the UK, marking the world’s biggest pilot scheme for a shorter work week so far.
Organised by 4-Day Week Global in partnership with think tank Autonomy and the 4-Day Week UK Campaign, the trial has seen businesses – including a number of technology companies – adopt a reduced working week with no loss of pay from June to December 2022.
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