Four-Day Work Week Under Consideration for Town Hall

Selectmen will consider reducing the work week to four days at Town Hall, closing the building Fridays in July and August.

The abbreviated week would get tried over the summer, said Town Administrator Tom Younger.

Younger introduced the idea to selectmen Wednesday, saying the change would extend Town Hall hours Monday through Thursday.

It would save an estimated $3,000 to $8,000 in energy costs over the summer, he said.

As it is, Town Hall is open Monday through Thursday from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., and on Friday from 8 a.m. to noon.

Under the proposal, Town Hall would be open Monday through Thursday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. And instead of an hour the 25 or so employees would have 30 minutes for lunch, he said.

Selectmen held off discussion until their next meeting, June 19.

The town administrator invited residents to weigh in on the idea.

He said the four-day work week has been instituted as a permanent feature elsewhere but Swampscott would just be trying out the schedule.

He said Town Hall does not receive a lot of visits over the summer on Fridays. 

If approved, the pilot program would be evaluated at summer's end.

The program would apply only to Town Hall's employees.

The proposal has support from the employees' unions, the town administrator said.