This report builds on Autonomy’s previous research on the four-day week in order to promote greater awareness of the potential opportunities and challenges for the policy in Scotland’s private sector.

A summary of previous research findings on private sector working time initiatives is included as well as a survey of common implementation challenges and solutions.

The report also re-evaluates existing four-day week evidence through the lens of Scotland’s Fair Work Convention, outlining guiding principles for a fair and equitable four-day week in Scotland. These elements include:

The report also provides a bird’s eye view of the public and private sectors in the Scottish labour market, including assessments of which areas might be best equipped to move to a four-day week in the here and now, versus those that may require longer-term planning and investment. This assessment combines consultant review and quantitative modelling to find:

The report finds that these jobs are concentrated in: Edinburgh, Glasgow, North and South Lanarkshire, Fife and Aberdeen City. 52.1% of those in these jobs are worked by women and 47.9% by men.

Other jobs – 52% of the labour market – have been labelled as more challenging to implement (requiring more staff or more innovative workarounds). The geography of these more challenging roles is also noted.