Could Maine adopt a four-day workweek? One legislator wants to find out
Sen. Rick Bennett (R-Oxford) addresses the upper chamber on May 7, 2025. (By Emma Davis/ Maine Morning Star)
A Republican legislator is pushing for the state to lay the groundwork for a four-day work week by establishing a pilot project and a tax credit to encourage participation.
Sen. Rick Bennett of Oxford presented a resolve, LD 1865, to the Taxation Committee on Thursday that would establish a pilot project administered by the Maine Department of Labor to 'promote, incentivize and support' the use of a four-day work week and study the benefits and effects of the schedule change.
'This proposal is rooted in a simple principle,' Bennett said. 'Maine people work hard and they deserve to thrive, not just survive.'
Bennett said his proposal is not about working less but working smarter, but some Republican legislators on the committee were critical of the plan.
'Working five days a week, that's part of being an adult,' said Rep. Tracy Quint of Hodgdon.
Bennett pushed back. 'I don't think part of being an adult is to have to work in a given rigor that was handed to us by what worked in 1938,' he said, adding that when former President Franklin D. Roosevelt ushered in the 40-hour work week about 80 years ago, critics feared economic disaster but instead it helped usher in an era of prosperity.
'I do not want our state policy making to be governed by fear,' Bennett said.
The pilot project would be voluntary, open to all private and public employers with at least 15 employees, but selection will be up to a process established by the Department of Labor to ensure a wide breadth of participation.
Research on four-day work weeks is in its early stages, and not all four-day work weeks look the same.
Bennett said he'd like the pilot to involve a reduction in hours per week to 32 hours, eight hours per day, without any loss of pay, employment status or benefits. Other models compress 40 hours into four days.
An international trial of more than 200 companies that switched to a reduced hours workweek like Bennett proposed found improved worker well-being, retention and recruitment, with most companies choosing to continue the model.
However, other studies identified some negative impacts, including scheduling problems, more intense monitoring measures and a risk of benefits fading over time.
Some private Maine businesses have implemented four-day work weeks, using varying methods, as well as a handful of municipalities, including South Portland, Lewiston and Biddeford.
In order to encourage participation, the resolve would also establish a tax credit against income taxes owed by that employer.
The specifics of that credit are not outlined in the proposal. Currently, it states that it would be determined by the department and the State Tax Assessor, but constitutionally tax changes must go through the Legislature, so ultimately such a decision would have to come back to lawmakers.
Rep. Shelley Rudnicki (R-Fairfield) questioned why a tax credit is necessary if some municipalities and businesses in Maine have already implemented four-day work weeks, but Bennett said Maine-specific data on effectiveness is lacking. The credit would be an incentive to help the state gather that data, and it is not intended to replace the cost of the additional eight-hour work day.
'I want it to be proven out that the productivity gains and the other possible advancements are achievable and aren't just replaced by state tax dollars,' Bennett said.
Pressed on the cost the tax credit could incur the state by legislators of both parties, Bennett said he would return with specifics for the work session but anticipates it to be modest.
He is also open to the committee choosing to fund an incentive in another way, noting that he modeled his plan after a similar bill currently being considered in Massachusetts that uses taxpayer dollars.
'I hope that you don't reject it on that basis,' he said.
The duration of the pilot project in Maine would be at least two years but no more than four years, which would be determined by the Department of Labor.
The resolve specifies that participating employers should be diverse in size, industry location and ownership, including those owned by veterans, women, minorities and people with disabilities. Those participating should also have both employees who are exempt from and subject to the federal Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938.
No one testified for or against the measure on Thursday, but Patrick Woodcock, president and CEO of the Maine State Chamber of Commerce, spoke neither for nor against. Woodcock said, if the resolve does pass, the chamber would want to partner with the Department of Labor to make the pilot as effective as possible, noting that it would be helpful to gather data about how a four-day work week would work for salaried versus hourly employees.
'I think ultimately, for something like this to be successful, you do need the executive buy-in,' Woodcock said. 'If this does have a trend of being utilized as a best practice, I think Maine does need to be at the forefront of consideration of this model.'
The department would be required to report annually to the Legislature on the progress and participation levels for the duration of the pilot project and then submit a final report.
The report would assess the economic and social effect of a four-day workweek on the participating employers and the effect on the wellbeing of participating employees, as well as include recommendations.
However, throughout the pilot, participating employers must provide the department access to employer data and participating employees including through interviews and surveys on a regular basis, though employees can opt out of those inquiries and any data gathered must be anonymized.
The State Tax Assessor would also be required to submit an annual report on the tax credit.
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