Cambridge Committee Hears Case for Four-Day Municipal Work Week

CAMBRIDGE — October 24, 2024 — Cambridge council committee hears data and a local case study on the four-day municipal work week. At an October 24 informational hearing, Dr. Juliet Schor of 4 Day Week Global presented international trial data showing a 7 percent discontinuation rate after one year, a 39 percent turnover reduction at South Cambridgeshire District Council in the UK, and a 53 percent increase in job applications at that council. Ron Hogan of Malden described that city's pandemic-era shift to a four-day schedule for roughly 80 city hall employees — achieved by extending hours across the remaining four days rather than cutting total hours — and reported turnover has since fallen to "almost nothing." Councilor Patricia Nolan pressed both presenters on whether the model could apply to public safety and service workers and asked why the City of Golden, Colorado reported a 79 percent drop in overtime and a tripling of self-initiated police enforcement activity after its 32-hour police pilot. Councilor Sumbul Siddiqui, who organized the session at the city manager's request, said Cambridge has no documented retention crisis but is exploring the schedule change as a proactive workforce policy alongside its existing remote work policy.