Fayetteville offices to extend hours Jan. 1; 4-day weeks possible for some employees

By JOHN MUNFORD
jmunford@TheCitizenNews.com

Fayetteville’s City Hall will be open longer Monday through Friday starting Jan. 1 thanks to a trial program the city is implementing.

The city offices will open a half-hour earlier in the morning at 7:30 and stay open until 6 p.m., a full hour later than current hours. City employees schedules will be staggered to cover the extra hours, said City Manager Joe Morton.

The main goal of extending the hours is to allow those who can’t make it back by the current 5 p.m. closing time an extra hour in the evening to come by, Morton said. The early morning hours will likely benefit contractors and others who need access to the building department and already get earlier starts to their day, he added.

“We’ll evaluate it after the first three months and see if it’s paying off,” Morton said. “If the community sees it as a benefit, we’ll continue it. If not, we’ll look at doing something different.”

The change in schedules will allow some employees to work four-day weeks with 10-hour days, Morton said. That allows an extra day off Friday or Monday for employees to spend time with their families and take care of personal business such as medical appointments that can’t be scheduled on Saturday or Sunday, he added.

Another benefit will be the added reduction in commuting for employees, which will also help, although in a small way, air quality, Morton said.

“It should also reduce comp time and overtime in certain areas,” Morton added.