thank you
hello everyone happy Tuesday I'm Coy
wire thanks for making us part of your
day at CNN 10. let's kick off our show
with a discussion on the four day work
week sounds good right teachers is it
possible though is it better the concept
of the four day work week is simple get
paid the same but only work four days a
week a growing list of companies are
testing shorter work weeks to avoid
employee burnout especially as the
United States is faced with a tight
labor market and employers are doing
more to attract Talent workers are
burned out from the pandemic and are
putting greater value on personal time
quiet quitting and the great resignation
are popular terms in offices all across
the country this week 28 companies in
the U.S and Canada began a six-month
pilot program of shortened work weeks in
partnership with a non-profit called
four day week Global and this isn't the
first program of its kind companies that
participated in pilot program in Britain
say they saw no loss in productivity
during a similar experiment and in some
cases they saw significant Improvement
employees say they have more time to
spend with their families to invest in
hobbies and to sleep now all this they
say boosts their well-being therefore
making them more productive at work many
companies that try a four day work week
they say they'll likely keep them going
but it's also important to note that the
four day work week is not the norm and
for some Industries it's not even
possible companies in manufacturing and
service Industries and restaurants they
need to hire more people for more shifts
which would cut profits and ultimately
impact the consumers let's hear more now
from CNN Chief business correspondent
Christine Romans
five days pay four days work a four day
work week four day work week sounds
amazing right shorter Work Week same pay
more than 180 companies and thousands of
employees around the globe have joined a
six-month pilot program to see how a
four day work week could function for
their businesses and so far the
experience has been positive
chaotic we didn't know what we were
doing we were all over the shop it
sounds like an idea fresh out of the
pandemic a Silicon Valley dream right
not quite
the reality is that the desire for a
shorter work week goes back a long time
a really long time
in the 1970s it was fairly popular and
people were talking about the crisis of
leisure and then it faded from you for a
long time I guess the tide has gone out
and we've seen just how strapped we all
were with our work lives and home lives
and lack of balance there the pandemic
turbo charged the four-day week because
employers started you know having to
figure out some solutions to the stress
and burnout but the other thing is is
remote work because one of the things
that we hear from management is that
remote work taught management it could
trust its employees okay so let's talk
about the basic parameters then of the
four day week Global pilot program the
requirements are no reduction in pay so
all employees are still getting their
five days pay and there must be a
meaningful reduction in work time so the
vast majority are going to a four day 32
two hour week you've got to figure out
how to do it so that you can maintain
your productivity and your output and so
forth why did you guys decide to try
this there was enough evidence out there
that suggested that companies
particularly like Kickstarter can
successfully transition to a four day
work week while maintaining or improving
productivity but we're also looking at
the way that work was changing given the
pandemic we moved to fully remote and we
just saw people that were burnt out and
tired and retaining our employees making
easier higher employees and making sure
our employees were happy at home is is
really why we decided to pursue it first
six weeks navigating those was really
really hard after that first weekend of
us doing four days and then you know
having either the Friday the Monday off
I thought what have I done I'm gonna
ruin this business without even trying
but now fast forward you've had the
mindset shift you figured out the
handovers people came in the workers
were fighting for it to keep the four
day work week and how are you now we're
doing amazing now by the time we had
kind of gotten into that fourth month it
really started to go together and one of
the big benefits we've seen is just the
perspective and almost kind of freshness
that people bring to work with them
because of those four days and that
fifth day really giving them time to do
stuff they want to do
10 second trivia what's the name of this
famous Clock Tower the Elizabeth Tower
Big Ben Parliament Tower or the Tower of
London
correct answer is the Elizabeth Tower
Big Ben is the nickname for its hour
Bell
time now to travel across the pond to
the city of London their world famous
clock is getting a facelift the
Elizabeth Tower is so much more than a
timepiece or piece of architecture it's
a symbol of British freedom and
democracy it's been under construction
since 2017 and will cost 80 million
pounds when all said and done let's go
inside now to get a glimpse of London
that not many people get to see
it's probably the most famous clock
tower in the world
a symbol of London British democracy and
freedom that needed saving urgently
since 2017 Big Ben's bongs have been
almost entirely silent and until
recently the Elizabeth tower has been
hidden behind scaffolding undergoing an
80 million pound makeover to fix leaking
roofs and crumbling stonework among
other issues we've replaced lots of
stone we've replaced all of the clock
face glass we've taken off all of the
cast iron up at the roof level and
repaired it and put it back on
International tourists have never been
permitted inside the tower but
parliament's Estates historian Dr Mark
Collins can take us 399 steps to the top
and show us what's changed
we have one of the cast iron dials which
has 324 pieces of mouth-blown opal glass
we found that it wasn't actually black
paint on the exterior but it was a very
Vivid Prussian Brew which has now been
returned new energy efficient LED lights
will illuminate the clocks they'll be
able to change color to support causes
or festivals
hundreds of cogs gears and chains that
turn the dial hands and operate the Bell
hammers have been removed and cleaned
this is the Striking train which is Big
Bear when the mechanism and Bella
reacquainted Big Ben can strike again
and the renovation will be complete
foreign
is Big Ben the our Bell which weighs
over 13 tons and then the four quarter
Bells give the chew the Westminster
quarters which are taken from Handel's
Messiah
after it was installed a crack appeared
in the Bell but instead of having it
replaced the Bell was turned the hammer
size reduced and is told with a deep
sonorous e note ever since
it's such a serious note after the
quarter charge
to the devastating Wars of the 20th
century Big Ben's bongs took on new
meaning first of all it plays its part
in a ceremony on Armistice days in the
remembrance of the thousands who died in
the first war when we come to the second
world war it's heard around the world
it's broadcast by the BBC
and people hear it and they know that
there is still one free country left in
Europe
at the very top of the tower beyond the
gilding that has been restored and
replaced unique 360 degree views across
the city down onto Parliament square and
Westminster Abbey and over the Thames in
South London
the clock tower has become such a
feature of London it has a festive ads
or it's got a sort of toy like charm to
it and I think now that it's returned to
this sort of frivolity that they've had
with all the gilding replaced and the
new color scheme I think it's looking
very special indeed
and for today's 10 out of 10 a
tremendous way to plan an Autumn trip
across the country to see unbelievable
sights nature lovers are falling in love
with a guide that shows exactly when and
where to see the charm of the changing
fall colors in every state you can
pumpkin spice things up a bit with
Precision using the interactive map at
smokymountains.com hurry though because
when winter comes this lovely time of
year leaves time now for a special shout
out to Midwest City Middle School in
Midwest City Oklahoma we're not going to
leave you hanging thanks for subscribing
and commenting on our YouTube page I'm
Coy wire this is CNN 10 and we'll see
you tomorrow