Asda has halted the trials of a four-day working week after staff claimed that longer shifts from condensed hours were “physically demanding”.

According to The Telegraph, the pilot, which saw staff in 20 Asda stores working a 44-hour week over four days rather than five for the same pay, left employees claiming to feel exhausted despite the trial having initially been introduced to aid store managers with more flexible working patterns.

Asda first brought in the change in September 2023 in an attempt to stop displeased managers “leaving in their droves”, prompted by management concerns over figures that showed a 13.9% increase in turnover among retail managers in 2022.

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Some parents told the publication that the change created “difficulties with childcare and school drop offs and pick-ups” due to the earlier start and later finish times.

However, a spokesperson for the grocer said that a trial involving 39 hours in five days, with no reduction in pay, is proving to be more successful and will continue until the end of 2024.

Asda is not the only supermarket to be trialling more flexible working options.

In February, Morrisons introduced flexible working hours at its Bradford head office, moving to a four-and-a-half-day week, with Saturday working no longer required.

M&S also offers a Worklife scheme, which officially began in January 2023, offering over 3,000 retail managers additional days and hours to their shifts.

Store managers can choose whether to spend their hours over five days or work a four-day ‘compressed’ week.