The Tory government has done its best to undo almost every improvement to workers’ pay and conditions over the past thirteen years, so it’s not often that we get to talk about organizing as anything other than a defensive measure. But let’s change that. Let’s talk about organizing for a four-day week.

Recent progress toward a thirty-five-hour week has set a decent starting point as a core demand for unions to bring to the bargaining table. In light of the uptake of the four-day week across various sectors, however, along with the highly successful trial of a four-day week at South Cambridgeshire District Council (they’ve saved over £550,000 by filling hard-to-fill roles and expanded the trial to include the council’s refuse workers) and the imminent trial of a four-day week in the Scottish public sector (delivery of as Scottish National Party manifesto commitment made back in 2021), now is the time to include explicit mention of the four-day, thirty-two-hour working week in union pay surveys and pay claims.

It’s also time for all workers, unionized or otherwise, to demand a four-day week in their workplace. The four-day week is the ideal bargaining chip to have on the table when pay talks hit a dead end. Boss won’t budge on 5 percent? Add an agreement to trial a four-day week and you could have a deal that keeps everyone happy.