HomeMy WebLinkAbout16- Economic Development ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AGENCY
" OF THE CITY OF SAN BERNARDINO
REQUEST FOR COMMISSION/COUNCIL ACTION
From: TIMOTHY C. STEINHAUS Subject: ADJUSTED WORK
Agency Administrator WEEK SCHEDULE
Date: December 16, 1993
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ynonsis of Previous Commission/Council/Committee Action(s):
On September 7, 1993, the Community Development Commission approved a pilot 9/80 adjusted work week
schedule terminating December 31, 1993.
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Recommended Motionts):
(Community Development Commission)
MOTION: That the Community Development Commission approve a continuous synchronized "9/80"
adjusted work week schedule for the Economic Development Agency and authorize the Agency
Administrator to make all necessary adjustments to coordinate and synchronize staffing work
i schedules in the event the City adopts a pilot or permanent 9/80 schedule.
TIMOTHY C. STEINHAUS
Agency Administrator
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f Contact Person(s): Timothy Steinhaus/Stafford W Parker Phone: 5081
Project Area(s): N/A Ward(s): N/A
Supporting Data Attached: Staff Report: 9/80 Announcements: Main Street memo dated 12/13/93
FUNDING REQUIREMENTS: Amount: N/A Source: N/A
Budget Authority: N/A
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Commission/Council Notes:
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KJH:SWP:dle:980extn.cdc COMMISSION MEETING AGENDA
Meeting Date: 12/20/1993
Agenda Item Number:
ECON " MIC DEVELOPMENT _ GENCY
OF THE CITY OF SAN BERNARDINO
STAFF REPORT
ADJUSTED WORK WEEK SCHEDULE
The purpose of this report is to delineate staff findings regarding trial implementation of the
9/80 work week schedule and, pursuant to such observations, seek Commission approval of
same on a permanent basis.
Subsequent to Commission approval on September 7, 1993, staff implemented a pilot
synchronized, compressed "9/80" adjusted work week schedule for the period of September
27, 1993 to December 31, 1993. Basically, the program allowed EDA office closure twice
monthly on alternative Fridays prior to the Mondays when the Commission was not in
session. Anticipated benefits under the 9/80 schedule were as follows:
1. The new schedule will provide excellent and enhanced convenience
for the use of citizens and professionals servicing the Agency due
to resulting expanded office hours that are more consistent with
their own working hours.
2. The new schedule will result in a minimum ten (10) percent
reduction of Agency employee vehicle ridership to help satisfy
mandatory South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD)
regulations. The City is currently not in compliance with SCAQMD
regulations and this achievement can be claimed by the City.
3. Sick leave usage will be reduced.
4. Work productivity will be increased.
5. Utility and energy cost savings will occur based on closing on
alternative Fridays.
6. Staff morale will improve.
7. The pilot program will act as a test case or "proving ground"
for City consideration and conversion.
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KJH:SWP:d1e:980extn.cdc COMMISSION MEETING AGENDA
Meeting Date: 12/20/1993
Agenda Item Number:
ECONOMIC DEVELOPI._-�NT AGENCY STAFF REPORT
Adjusted Work Week Schedule
December 16, 1993
Page Number - 2 -
Public Information Strategies
To aid the public as the Agency transitioned to the new schedule, public notices were
distributed and key organizations were notified of the pending change well in advance of its
implementation. This included regular posting of notices on the Agency bulletin board,
elevators, City Hall, and exterior office doors; stuffing of notices in all agency billings to
tenants, developers and merchants doing business with the Agency and notifying such entities
as the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, County of San Bernardino, etc.;
press releases; individual notifications to professionals routinely working with the Agency and
the utilization of a "live" answering service on the days of closure. This commitment to
minimize inconvenience to the public by helping it become and remain informed about the
program was both necessary and successful. Sample copies of some of the notifications are
attached.
Public Convenience
In all candor office hours of 7:30 A.M. to 4:30 P.M. are not convenient for the average
working person to visit the Agency and conduct business. This may not negatively impact
business professionals, who may have more control over their working hours, as much as it
does citizens who work traditional hours of 7:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M. and 8:00 A.M. to 5:00
P.M. There is not enough personal discretion or time for such persons to take care of
business at the Agency in the morning and get to work on time. Further, the Agency office is
closed when the majority of these individuals get off work.
The expanded hours of 7:30 A.M. to 5:30 P.M. substantially solves this problem. It also
precludes the need to grant employee overtime to meet with a client after work hours, while
simultaneously avoiding the necessity of the client taking off work for an hour or more. This
is a benefit that was realized immediately and still continues.
Telephone messages from the answering service on closed Fridays reveal no problems with
missed messages or triggering of problems with negotiations or proposals.
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KJH:SWP:d1e:980extn.cdc COMMISSION MEETING AGENDA
Meeting Date: 12/20/1993
Agenda Item Number:
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ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AGENCY STAFF REPORT
Adjusted Work Week Schedule
December 16, 1993
Page Number - 3 -
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A log of incoming calls received after 4:30 P.M. was taken for forty-five (45) days during the
pilot program implementation. During this period, the Agency received 219 calls from
clients/customers which averages approximately 5 calls daily between 4:30 P.M. and 5:30
P.M. Calls from organizations and professionals totaled 961 which averages 22 calls daily. It
should be noted professionals and organizations received direct mailings about the new
schedule and obviously took advantage of it. So did clients and customers even though they
did not all get direct personal mailings. Further, the trend of calls after 4:30 P.M. is growing
because the word is getting out about the new schedule. There was no log taken of meetings
within and visitations to the office between 4:30 P.M. and 5:30 P.M., although there was a
marked increase.
Interestingly, there has been an increase in citizen traffic after 4:30 P.M., most notably to
make various payments and deal with housing issues. This is probably because the majority
of such participants are everyday working people seeking rehabilitation loans. Because of the
new schedule many of these appointments are conducted after 4:30 for the convenience of the
client/citizen. Staff also realizes that many of the offices it deals with are also closed on
Fridays - either every Friday pursuant to a 4/10 schedule or alternative Fridays under the 9/80
schedule. Due to this, there is no coordination or operations problem.
Many of the telephone messages taken from the answering service during Friday closures
were from City Hall staff workers and not the general public. None of the callers, known to
date, have had a problem with the 9/80 schedule. There has been no inconvenience surfaced
by individuals or the public in general. This statement is also true of operations of the EDA
Main Street staff that interact extensively with downtown businesses.
Air QualiU Standards
The credit of average vehicle ridership to the city toward compliance with SCAQMD
regulations is both helpful and necessary in view of the severity of penalties for non-
compliance. Past efforts of the Agency to meet these standards have categorically failed. It
is a problem that cannot be ignored and will not go away without being addressed directly.
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KJH:SWP:d1e:980extn.cdc COMMISSION MEETING AGENDA
Meeting Date: 12/20/1993
Agenda Item Number:
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AGENCY STAFF REPORT
Adjusted Work Week Schedule
December 16, 1993
Page Number - 4 -
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Staff Absenteeism
Notwithstanding an uncommon rash of family/employee medical problems and the current
"flu" season, there has been no appreciable increase in the category of sick leave usage.
While not totally, most employees tend to make medical appointments on their Fridays off as
well as schedule appointments for their children, visit children's schools and the like.
Employees with small amounts of sick leave usually opt to use Fridays also. This trend gives
management a higher level and consistency of staffing on any given work day and a
correspondingly higher productivity level.
Compared to the period of August 1, 1993 to September 30, 1993, there has been a decrease
of over thirty percent staff usage of vacation time. Further, between the period August 1,
1993 to September 30, 1993 the usage of personal leave time dropped twenty-seven percent.
These statistics reflect the utilization of Fridays by most staff for doctor appointments,
personal leave and vacation usage.
Work Productivity
During the trial period of the program, there has been no decrease in staff work productivity
with respect to quantity, timeliness or responsiveness. This has occurred notwithstanding the
occurrence of extensive agendas (i.e. the December 6, 1993 Agenda had twenty-three items)
and special committee meetings. This is not a unique occurrence. Service to existing clients
has been on time and consistent.
As was noted earlier in this report, walk-in traffic and incoming telephone calls have been
increasing as the Agency's public information campaign takes hold and the public adjusts to
the 9/80 work week schedule. A number of the individuals receiving Agency staff assistance
from 4:30 P.M. to 5:30 P.M. indicated they could not have effectively conducted business
with staff, but for the 9/80 schedule. This, too, has had a positive impact on productivity.
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KJH:SWP:d1e:980extn.cdc COMMISSION MEETING AGENDA
Meeting Date: 12/20/1993
Agenda Item Number:
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AGENCY STAFF REPORT
Adjusted Work Week Schedule
December 16, 1993
Page Number - 5 -
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Utilities and Energy
Staff has been unable to quantify savings of energy within the 201"E" street building.
Paradoxically, this is because the staff has been successful in leasing the building to new
tenants during the 9/80 pilot program period and utilities are generally included in the lease
rate and not segregated from Agency office usage. While we are precluded from specifying
the savings it is believed intuitively that they exist as they have been evidenced in other cities
initiating the 9/80 program. We do not doubt that our program saves energy cost also.
Staff Morale
Simply stated, the 9/80 program has been a staff moral booster. This is somewhat surprising
during a period in which the work load was extremely heavy and some employees had to
double up to produce the work while at the same time having received no cost of living
increase since 1989. Staff concern about the quality of work remains high and the attention
to duty is consistent. There is also one-hundred percent support for the 9/80 program by
staff.
E
In conclusion, the 9/80 pilot program has been an unqualified success and staff recommends
its approval on a permanent basis. In the event the City approves a pending 9/80 program,
the Agency would adjust its schedule to coordinate with that of the City. Should the
Commission choose not to continue the program, it would be administratively necessary to
terminate the program in January 1994 in order to "balance" a full two week work period.
Staff recommends adoption of the form motion.
f
TIMOTHY C. STEINAHAUS, Administrator
Economic Development Agency
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KJH:SWP:d1e:980extn.cdc COMMISSION MEETING AGENDA
Meeting Date: 12/20/1993
Agenda Item Number:
Main Street-----
Main Street, Inc.
201 North"E"Street, Suite 104
San Bernardino, CA 92401-1507
Tel. (909) 381-5037• Fax (909)888-2576
STAFF REPORT
DATE: December 13, 1993
r ' TO: Timothy C. Steinhaus, Agency. Administrator
? FROM: Ann Harris, Executive Director
SUBJECT: 9/80 Work Week Schedule
Main Street has not seen any negative impact from the 9/80
schedule. The activities scheduled at Court Street Square on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays are executed as usual with most of
the attendees being citizens at large.
Main Street closes the business office on every other Friday, but
the operation of the office continues to run smoothly with Staff
maintaining flexible schedules.
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Main Street,Inc.,a division of The City of San Bernardino Economic Development Agency.
City of San Bernardino
Economic Development Agency
NEW OFFICE HOURS
The Economic Development Agency is implementing a 9/80 '
work week. This is part of our commitment in an effort to
meet air quality goals through employee vehicle trip
reduction. As an added convenience, our office will remain
open one hour later. As a result of this change, Agency
offices will be closed two Fridays per month.
Effective September 27, 1993, the new office hours will be:
Monday through Thursday: 7:30 a.m. - 5:30 p.m.
Friday: 7:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
This office will be closed on the following Fridays during the
calendar year 1993:
OCTOBER 93 NOVEMBER 93 DECEMBER 93
Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri
1 1 2 3 4 ' ' 1 2 3
4 5 6 7 8 9 10111 12 6 7 8
9
11 12 13 14 15 15 16 17 18 13 14 15116 17
18 19 20 21 22123 24 25 26 20 21 22 23
25 26 27 28 1291301 127128 29 30 31
(THIS DOES NOT INCLUDE HOLIDAY CLOSURES)
MAKING A POSITIVE CHANGE WITH YOU IN MIND
New Office Hour,
i
City of San Bernardino
Economic Development Agency
p g Y
i
'i City of San Bernardino
Economic Development Agency
201 NORTH 'E' STREET,THIRD FLOOR
SAN BERNARDINO, CA 92401-1507
(909) 384-5081 FAX (909) 888-9413
NEW OFFICE HOURS
The Economic Development Agency is implementing a 9/80
work week. This is part of our commitment in an effort to
meet air quality goals through employee vehicle trip
reduction. As an added convenience, our office will remain
open one hour later. As a result of this change, Agency
offices will be closed two Fridays per month.
Effective September 27, 1993, the new office hours will be:
Monday through Thursday: 7:30 a.m. - 5:30 p.m.
Friday: 7:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
This office will be closed on the following Fridays during the
calendar year 1993:
OCTOBER 93 NOVEMBER 93 DECEMBER 93
Men Tue Wed Thu Fri Men Tue Wed Thu Fri Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri
1 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3
4 5 6 7 8 ; 8 9 10 11 12 6 7 8 9 IOi
11 12 13 14 15 15 16 17 18 19;' 13 14 15 16 17
18 19 20 21 J 22 23 24 25 26 20 21 22 23 24:
25 26 27 28129 29 30 27 28 29 30 31
(THIS DOES NOT INCLUDE HOLIDAY CLOSURES)
I