In general the UK workforce long for the weekends and often start thinking about what they are going to do with their time on a Friday. There is evidence to show that many workers reduce their productivity in the afternoon which can impact on the bottom line for businesses. Certainly the ##FF tweet regularly appears on Twitter at the end of the week showing it is on people’s minds. In this blog we look at the “Friday feeling” phenomenon and how employers should be managing that Friday feeling at work as some employees may appear to wind down ready for the weekend, long before necessary.
British Airways’ research done last year seems to indicate that many UK workers start clocking off for the weekend mid afternoon on a Friday and often once 1.30pm has passed.
Strange things happen on a Friday, it seems, that are not conducive to a productive working day. Many employees admit to taking it easier on a Friday compared to the rest of the week. Some workers deliberately put things off till Monday. Phone calls and emails may be ignored and important meetings are never convened for the end of the week. That “Friday feeling” provides for a better atmosphere it seems and workers say their boss is more lenient on that day.
Apparently the working day on a Friday consists of using Facebook, organising weekend plans, emailing friends, booking holidays and doing online banking. That’s all well and good, however, if HR policies allow for these activities. The use of Facebook and other social media should be governed by a social media policy and very few allow for the use of social media within working hours and should stipulate procedure in non-working hours if permitted. So for employees who potentially do not comply with a robust social media policy, they may face a disciplinary process. An IT use policy likewise should give guidance on personal use of IT equipment in working hours. It depends how tough an employer wants to be on its employees who want to wind down at the end of week and may not give their employer their all. An employer needs to think about morale and staff motivation, but within reason..
The official clocking off time is usually from 5pm onwards, but the lucky few are allowed to get away earlier. I know of one company that lets some workers work longer hours Monday to Thursday to fulfil their working week so that the whole of Friday can be taken off, which is fine if the nature of the workload allows for this. Complete Fridays or Friday afternoons off are indeed a wonderful benefit.
The roads do seem much quieter on a Friday so perhaps many employees benefit from this perk.
Claiming sickness absence could be another ruse for extending the weekend off. Employers should be aware of patterns developing with employees who regularly take off Fridays (and sometimes Mondays as well) and tackling any problem that emerges with an employee as quickly as possible.
If an employer is unwilling to give Friday afternoons off or allow an earlier get away another perk to offer could be a dress down Friday if appropriate. However, that practice should be accompanied by a robust dress code to avoid any faux pas.
Figures provided by the CIPD a few years ago were used to assess the cost to UK industry for the lack of productiveness on a Friday and this was estimated as being £50m per year, which is a hefty sum.
An employer must trade off possible lack of productivity with the generous ability to allow staff some time off.
#FF