Transportation Employees to Work Staggered Hours

Hoping to lead by example in the fight against increasing traffic, San Diego transportation officials Thursday announced that some of their employees will be allowed to choose what time they want to report to work.

More than 200 employees of the Metropolitan Transit Development Board, San Diego Trolley Inc. and the San Diego Transit Corp. will participate in the program that, within limits, will permit staggered work hours for management and clerical workers. Fare inspectors and drivers will continue to work specific shifts.

“Some employees may arrive at work as early as 6:30 a.m. and leave at 3:30 p.m., while others may choose to work from 9:30 to 6:30 p.m.,” said James R. Mills, chairman of the transit development board.

‘Improves the Ride’

“It improves the ride for people,” Mills said. “And it improves the economics of our operation.”

The MTDB has 54 management and clerical employees, 42 of which are on flex time, company spokeswoman Judy Leitner said. Of San Diego Transit’s 135 management and clerical staffers, five must work 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and flexible work schedules will be offered to the others next week. San Diego Trolley has 19 management and clerical staffers who will report to work in staggered shifts.

Leitner said the MTDB is acting in response to the passage of Proposition K in November. The measure, authored by City Councilman Bruce Henderson, calls for but does not require businesses of more than 25 employees to offer them variable work schedules in order to reduce peak-hour traffic.

After monitoring companies that already have variable work schedules, Henderson hopes to put forward an ordinance by summer that would require the employers to offer flexible work schedules. He said exceptions would probably be made for some companies, such as those with assembly lines.

Proposition K “was an advisory vote and it was non-binding,” Henderson said. “What it did was give me a mandate.”

When the proposition passed, he said, most of the city work force was already on a flexible work schedule. In September, the County Board of Supervisors approved staggered work hours for its employees.

Push at UCSD

Win Cox, director of public affairs at UC San Diego, said there will be a push in the next couple of months to get more university employees to consider staggered schedules. The university has had a longstanding policy of allowing employees to assume flexible schedules, subject to department head approval.

Cubic Corp., San Diego’s largest locally based defense contractor, has had staggered work shifts for its manufacturing staff for at least 30 years, company spokesman Jerry Ringer said. Ringer estimated that 20% to 25% of the company’s 3,800 employees participate.

Concern with traffic problems also prompted San Diego Gas & Electric Co. to offer “variable starting times” at least five years ago, said SDG&E; compensation manager Ronald Shelby.

At Pacific Bell, some managers work only three days a week, for 13 hours a day. Spokesman Michael Runzler said the company has also allowed four-day work weeks since September, 1986.