Rural municipalities in Canada lead the way in 4-day work weeks to combat high turnover rates
A rising variety of rural municipalities in Canada are adopting four-day work weeks in an try to draw and retain extra expertise.
Last week, the Township of Algonquin Highlands, Ont. introduced that it could be completely transferring to a “compressed” work week. Instead of working 5 days per week and eight hours per day, municipal workers will work 10-hour days 4 days per week.
Algonquin Highlands is the most recent within the rising checklist of rural municipalities which have chosen to implement a compressed four-day work week. Other Ontario municipalities which have already accomplished the identical embrace Aylmer, Zorra, Springwater and French River. Four-day work week trials have additionally taken place in Merritt, B.C., Saint John, N.B. and the District of Guysborough in Nova Scotia.
David Arbuckle of the Association of Municipal Managers, Clerks and Treasurers of Ontario says these measures are a response to the excessive workers turnover at municipalities, noting that compressed work weeks aren’t new to the sector both.
“They’re looking for ways to remain competitive within the sector because municipalities are competing for talent with the private sector with other public sector jobs, so they have to look for ways innovative ways to create an environment where it’s attractive for people to come in and work in their municipality,” Arbuckle stated.
Jobs within the municipal sector will be extremely worrying environments, Arbuckle says, as they contain answering to each residents and elected officers. Arbuckle additionally notes the sector has seen excessive ranges of turnover retirement, even earlier than COVID-19.
Four-day work week trials within the U.S. and Ireland have discovered that workers reported decrease ranges of stress, fatigue and burnout, together with enhancements in psychological well being. At the identical time, revenues for the collaborating firms went up.
When Zorra Township, Ont. applied its four-day work week, the truth that workers have been working longer hours per day meant that the township workplace could possibly be opened longer every day to the general public.
“We saw in Zorra that they were actually able to work the four-day work week, have longer hours during those days, but actually increased their service standard to their to the public. So ultimately, again, that’s why other municipalities may be looking at it,” Arbuckle stated.
But whereas rural municipalities have led the best way in introducing four-day work weeks, the concept has but to catch on in bigger cities. Arbuckle says it is “a little bit easier to manoeuvre” work schedules at smaller municipalities, a few of which have 5 or fewer workers.
“Larger municipalities, you have a lot more co-ordination that you have to do with different departments. You also usually have a higher union presence and those union contracts may provide a barrier to some changes that you want to make in the overall environment — not impossible, but certainly requires a little bit more negotiation,” he stated.
