THOUSAND OAKS : City Hall Workers Start 4-Day Week

Lights were shining at Thousand Oaks City Hall before sunrise and long after sunset Monday as city employees adjusted to the first day of a four-day, 10-hour-a-day workweek that will bring the city into compliance with air pollution regulations.

The interim City Hall will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays and closed Friday under the plan adopted in November by the City Council.

The new schedule will not affect the Thousand Oaks Public Library.

“We have tried to work with everyone so that we can meet their needs, knowing that you cannot do this without having major changes,” City Manager Grant Brimhall said.

Child care and night school were the biggest concerns of employees, said Denese Wilson Cox of the human resources office. “The key word that we’ve stressed all along is flexibility and balance,” she said.

Managers have tried to accommodate employee problems by allowing some to “telecommute” from home for up to four hours a week, she said.

Only six people will work at City Hall on Fridays, Wilson Cox said. Three are inspectors, and the others are employees whose difficulties with child care required them to maintain a traditional five-day workweek.

Wilson Cox said it takes about three months for employees to adjust to the new schedule. Although some are concerned about the fatigue of working longer days, she said, others appreciate having a weekend that lasts three days.

Officials said the new schedule will allow the city to meet a requirement by the Ventura County Air Pollution Control District of having an “average vehicle ridership” during commuting hours of 1.35 people.