Ohio State Workers Are Coping: It’s Now 8 to 5, With a 5-Day Week
Via
NY Times
By IAN URBINA
As flextime and telecommuting are becoming increasingly popular, state officials in Ohio have begun moving in the opposite direction with a plan to greatly restrict such arrangements for state workers.
In hopes of improving customer service by ensuring that agencies are fully staffed during business hours, the new personnel policy, which is backed by Gov. Ted Strickland, will require most state employees to work 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, with an hour for lunch, unless there is a job-related reason for a different schedule.
The plan, which according to the state workers’ union is expected to affect at least 500 people, began in early February, and all state agencies have until May 2 to comply.
State officials say the change is needed because too often departments were closed, phones went unanswered and customer service windows were left unattended, especially on Fridays, as state workers worked only four days a week.