“More For Less” in the Irish Construction Industry? An exploration into the benefits and feasibility of implementing Reduced Working Hours Strategies on Construction Sites in Ireland

The purpose of this study was to review the effectiveness of Reduced Working Hours Strategies (RWHS) such as The Four Day Week and explore Irish construction industry perception of how implementing such strategies might impact employee health, safety, well-being, recruitment, retention, and productivity. A mixed-methods research approach was used to uncover any perceptions of benefits, drawbacks and feasibility of RWHSs. The employer’s perspective was based on semi-structured interview data from market leading international construction companies. This was triangulated with survey data from the employee’s perspective to generate richer insights Results suggested RWHSs could significantly improve working and personal lives of on-site employees. Employees were working on average above 50 hours per week and are aware of the potential benefits of RWHSs particularly with regard to health, accidents, retention and work- life balance. The research indicates that from employer perspective, the study concluded that management personnel were wary of widespread implementation of RWHSs but regarded their implementation feasible in specific aspects of the construction process such as pre-fabrication. Furthermore, they felt increased use of BIM and innovative procurement might facilitate such strategies. Exploring the use of RWHSs was generally perceived as necessary and potentially beneficial, particularly given the industry’s recruitment, retention and productivity issues.