Current trials of a flexible 4.5-day working week have become one of the most discussed topics on Chinese social media in recent months, with more than 10 provinces and municipalities reportedly encouraging employers to participate.

Some local governments began to explore the possibility of a flexible 4.5-day working week as early as five years ago. In March 2020, Zhejiang Province issued a guideline on boosting consumption, encouraging a flexible 4.5-day working week. In the same year, Hebei Province proposed a flexible 2.5-day weekend as a means to encourage weekend tours to Beijing, Tianjin and other nearby destinations.

Most local governments are encouraging a flexible 4.5-day working week with the aim of stimulating service consumption. Local governments adopted many measures to boost consumption in the past, such as by offering subsidies for replacement of home appliances and automobiles. However, these approaches have generally targeted the consumption of physical commodities, which requires less time than consuming services.

As consuming services, for example, spending on dining, entertainment and recreation, requires more time, increasing consumers' free time is an important measure for boosting service consumption. It is hoped the 2.5-day weekend will encourage more people to make road trips to nearby provinces, or even longer journeys by air.

Chinese workers are often labeled as being hardworking to the point of excess. The 4.5-day working week may change some people's attitude toward work and gradually cultivate their awareness of the importance of work-life balance. The 4.5-day working week allows workers more time to rest and refresh themselves, and engage in leisure and sporting activities that will help relieve work pressures and increase their sense of wellbeing. Spending more time with family and friends and participating in community activities will help people enhance their interpersonal relationships, enrich their life experiences and improve their quality of life.

Such a change conforms to the trend of China's social development. With social and economic development and improvement of people's living standards, the demand for leisure and work-life balance is increasing. The 4.5-day working week is in line with this trend. It will help people in their pursuit of better lives and facilitate social progress and development.

Similar work schedules have been established in some developed countries. Employees in some European countries enjoy more holidays and more flexible work times than in other countries. Local governments in China encouraging the trial of a 4.5-day working week aim to bring their regions into line with international practice, enhance China's appeal and competitiveness to global talent, and create favorable conditions for sustainable social and economic development.

However, for most Chinese people, the goal of a 4.5-day working week and 2.5-day weekend is still hard to realize because it entails many legal issues that will have to be solved. According to current Chinese law, employees shall work for no more than eight hours a day and no more than 40 hours a week on average. Therefore, the model of 4.5-day working week and 2.5-day weekend can only be encouraged by local governments instead of being compulsory. Until the laws are revised, it is up to the employers whether they will implement the 4.5-day working week.

Copyedited by G.P. Wilson

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