Residents of Saint John and surrounding communities will notice a shift in how local government operates. Four day work week initiatives started as pandemic experiments. Now, they are permanent fixtures in several New Brunswick municipalities. Local governments report positive results for both employees and residents, according to a recent report from CTV News.

Saint John Adapts Its Approach

The City of Saint John introduced a four day work week pilot program in 2022. City officials made changes along the way to ensure residents still received consistent service.

Ian Fogan is the chief administrative officer for the City of Saint John. He notes that the initial setup had the customer care centre open Monday to Thursday. This schedule created challenges.

“From a customer service standpoint there were questions about if people could reach staff, who was able to be there, whether the entire city was shut down on that day,” Fogan says.

The city listened to the feedback. About a year and a half ago, officials adjusted the schedules. The customer care centre returned to a Monday to Friday operation. The flexible work program remains in place for staff.

“Our flexible work program has been a good incentive to retain, but also attract employees, which for a while we had a large difficulty attracting the right kind of talent,” Fogan adds.

Neighboring Communities See Growth

Other towns in the region experience similar benefits. Quispamsis and Miramichi launched their own programs in 2022.

In Quispamsis, employees choose between a regular five day schedule or working longer hours over four days. Staff members work Monday to Thursday or Tuesday to Friday. The town hall remains open all week.

Tim Roszell speaks for Quispamsis. He says the town actually expanded public facing hours by one hour each day.

“It has become a recruitment tool for the town, for sure,” Roszell says. “We had some positions open lately and the four day work week has certainly come into play there for sure.”

Miramichi made its initiative permanent in 2024 after a successful trial run. Mandi Grantmyre is the director of corporate services for the city. She says the feedback is great and the city plans an expansion of the program to include unionized administrative staff.

Other areas use different approaches. Tantramar uses a compressed schedule where employees get one Friday off per pay period. Riverview runs a seasonal four day schedule from May through October.

Why Local Governments Adopt These Policies

Local governments often struggle to attract and retain staff when competing with the private sector. Flexible schedules help municipalities compete with corporate employers.

Debbie Bailey is the chief executive officer of Four Day Week Global. Her advocacy group tracks condensed work schedules worldwide. She points out that municipalities use these policies to build better working conditions to offset salary limitations.

“What we are finding is that people are much more interested in lifestyle conditions than they are in the extra money coming through in the pay packet,” Bailey says.

The conversation shifted from questioning if a shorter week works to figuring out how to implement it effectively across different departments.

Frequently Asked Questions

Did Saint John close its customer care centre on Fridays?

The city initially closed the centre on Fridays during the pilot program. Officials changed this a year and a half ago. The customer care centre is now open Monday to Friday.

How does Quispamsis manage a four day schedule while staying open all week?

Employees stagger their shifts. Some work Monday to Thursday while others work Tuesday to Friday. This allows the town hall to remain open five days a week and even expand daily operating hours.

Why do municipalities offer flexible work schedules?

Local governments use flexible schedules to attract and retain talent. It provides a lifestyle benefit that helps them compete with private sector jobs.