Game Freak is officially introducing an optional four-day workweek for a limited portion of its workforce, the company announced today.
The studio behind Pokémon is calling this initiative a “selective weekly three-day system,” which will be available for full-time employees as a way to take an additional day away from work. This is an attempt from Game Freak’s management to provide more flexibility for certain individuals who need it.
In the official press release regarding this decision, Game Freak said this will be a system to benefit employees who have young children or who have limited options for childcare with their work schedule. Management specifically lists this as a useful tool for use in line with a children’s summer vacation period or in times when a parent needs to provide temporary nursing care for a new child.
The three-day system will let eligible workers opt-in to the program and take an additional weekday off in addition to the weekend, which is dedicated time off for the entire studio. Those workers will receive 80 percent of their standard employee salary, not counting bonuses, for working 32 hours and the day lost.
“We want to become an autonomous manufacturing group where each and every one of us can choose how to work at our own will,” Game Freak said. “This system represents Game Freak’s desire to create a new way of working. We will continue to evolve so that our employees can realize their full potential.”
Prior to this, Game Freak already offered substantial work-from-home options for its employees, an hourly paid leave initiative, and other systems to provide flexible schedules to its staff.
