Summer Fridays boost happiness for 85% of workers

Summer Fridays are certainly a nice perk. But do they actually have a long-term impact on workplace culture? 

According to a recent survey conducted by software company Wisetail, 63% of respondents said they struggle with Seasonal Affective Disorder — depressive episodes associated with the weather — and while 80% of those who suffer from SAD said it affects the quality of work they put in at their jobs, 85% of those whose job offers Summer Fridays — which give employees permission to either leave work early or take Fridays off, depending on the company — said the perk makes them feel happier at work.

“Summer Fridays as a concept have been about providing workers more autonomy and entrusting them to manage their own work environment and pace,” says Ali Knapp, president of Wisetail. “The idea is that, with greater agency, workers are happier and more productive. Our research corroborates what others have observed as well: that productivity remains consistent despite not working in a traditional office setting.” 

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Wisetail found that 65% of workers prefer working outside when the weather is nice, 53% prefer to get work done in local cafés, 48% on rooftops and 48% on patios. Those same employees said that weather factors can make them have a bad day at their jobs — 25% said heavy rain and 25% said freezing temperatures are often behind unproductive workdays.

For working parents, the impact of summer Fridays can be even more valuable, as summer is often far from relaxing for caregivers, Knapp says. 

“Although summer is associated with vacations and exciting outdoor activities, the summer months can often be very stressful and expensive for working parents,” she says. “Child care or summer camp has to be planned in advance to account for their absence. With summer Fridays, parents have one less worry with the added flexibility.” 

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Summer Fridays are often an unofficial perk, but it may be in employers’ best interest to both implement and enforce them — especially in a post-pandemic work environment in which employees are less willing to sacrifice work-life balance. Part of what contributed to The Great Resignation, according to Knapp, was employers’ response to the pandemic and how they failed to adjust work policies to accommodate their staff.

“If employers don’t offer summer Fridays or some type of hybrid work schedule, they can consider reevaluating their employee benefits package, because their employees are certainly thinking about them,” Knapp says. “Employees are now aware there are other companies who have made those changes permanent and are not sticking around any longer.”