Red Bank returns to four-day workweek

BY KIMBERLY STEINBERG Staff Writer

RED BANK — The Borough Council voted to reinstate a five-day workweek for municipal employees after finding that cost savings fell short of projections.

During the May 10 meeting, Councilman Michael DuPont announced that all municipal offices would return to a five-day workweek and be open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. effective June 1.

“The savings wasn’t sufficient to outweigh the shortcomings of not being able to be open on Friday,” DuPont added. “We felt that we need to serve the public a little better. After a year’s trial, the five-day workweek is better.”

For the past year, the borough has experimented with an extended four-day workweek with employees working Monday through Thursday from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.

“It was a good experiment, but it was an experiment that didn’t save as much as we would have liked it to,” said DuPont.

Mayor Pasquale Menna said the cost savings did not seem to be material when considering the high volume of visits to the municipal building and that some of the building had to remain open even on those days that the departments were closed to the public.

Last September, DuPont estimated that the shortened workweek would save approximately $3,000 in air conditioning costs for each summer month, plus utility costs for shutting the building. He estimated that the borough would save $15,000 in annual electricity expenses as a result of the switch.

Although last summer was mild, DuPont said total savings were between $5,000 and $7,500.

Menna said the small savings in utility costs wasn’t enough to justify the inconvenience to residents.

Borough resident David Prown commended the council’s admission of the failed experiment.

“I want to thank you all for your transparency,” said Prown. “Thank you for sharing with us all the low amount saved.”