MORE than 40 per cent of people in Bahrain interviewed for a survey said they would like the two-day weekend to continue, rather than switch to a four-day work week.
The Bahrain Economist Society (BES) conducted the research recently covering a random sample of 50 people from different sectors, age groups, gender and nationalities.
The study was carried out to gauge public opinion on whether Bahrain should follow the UAE and switch to a three-day weekend.
Respondents were asked to share their views via an online questionnaire.
The findings revealed that 44pc of respondents preferred the two-day weekend, while 24pc stated they wouldn’t mind a switch to a three-day weekend – provided there were no changes to the school attendance hours during the four working days.
Twenty per cent of respondents added that they would be okay with the three-day weekend but wanted their children to spend more hours in school per week.
The remaining 11pc said they would be comfortable with the three-day weekend but wanted schools to operate five days a week so that their children’s education is not affected.
This also meant that all school employees would have to work for five days a week.
“Changing the length of the working week is a complex issue because of the extent to which we have engineered our lives according to the current schedule,” BES president Dr Omar Al Ubaydli told the GDN.
“It is tempting to fixate on the idea of more worker rest, but the issue of education is important and needs to be addressed.
“As the data indicates, experts are divided regarding the optimal response.”
Multiple reports in the UAE media have stated that employees feel more work productive and relaxed with the new four-and-a-half-day work week since the start of the year, while employers noted that staff attendance has improved.
Earlier this year, the UAE made a shift of its working week (for public sector) to four-and-a-half days from Monday until Friday mid-day with a Saturday-Sunday weekend (including for schools) to better align its economy with the global markets.
The UAE government said last December that work on Friday would end at 12 noon before the prayers, while private companies were free to choose their own working week.
Friday is a weekly holiday in the Gulf states that hold the noon congregational prayers.
Earlier this year, Saudi Human Resources and Social Development Ministry denied reports that it was considering plans to switch to a three-day weekend.
The pandemic has further ignited conversations between workers and employers on workplace flexibility and ensuring a proper work-life balance.
In Canada, research from global employment agency Indeed found that 41pc of employers were considering alternative hybrid schedules and new work styles, post the pandemic.
According to a survey by cloud-software vendor Qualtrics, a whopping 92pc of US workers were in favour of a shortened work week, even if it meant working longer hours.
Bahrain restructured its weekend for the public sector in 2006 to run on Friday-Saturday instead of Thursday-Friday to align its economy with its neighbours and the rest of the world.
sandy@gdnmedia.bh
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