A large Dominican beer company says a trial run of the so-called “4 x 4” work schedule has been working well and their employees like it. The Cervecería Nacional Dominicana was the first business to adopt the new scheduling mode. A special resolution of the Labor Department allowed the beer company to run a pilot program to try it out for 18 months. It has now been using the system for nine months and has pronounced it a success. The 4 x 4 program means staff work four 12-hour days in a row followed by four days off. The Cervecería Nacional Dominicana reports “very good results” from their trial so far. A survey conducted by the company showed 81% of employees prefer the new hours, 12% had no preference and 6% preferred the eight-hour day. Martín Dipitón, a young student and employee of the beer company, says “So far, we are getting a lot of advantages and conveniences from it because we have more time to do our studies and be with family. The new schedule hasn’t hurt me in any way so far.” The 4 x 4 work schedule was recently approved for businesses operating in Dominican free zones.
