Riverside County Offices May Shut Down Fridays For Good

Shutting down many Riverside County facilities every Friday may become the norm if the Board of Supervisors on Tuesday approves a recommendation by the Department of Human Resources.

According to the department, the county would benefit by implementing a synchronized 4-10 work schedule, in which the majority of employees are on the job 10 hours a day, Monday to Thursday.

Currently, roughly a third of the county’s workforce — 5,900 people — are on 4-10 schedules, with the balance working the customary five days a week, 3-10 schedules, or a hybrid of the two.

Last August, as part of its cost-cutting strategy, the board ordered that all non-essential county facilities be closed every Friday for the duration of the 2009-10 fiscal year, which ends June 30.

The closures have impacted the County Administrative Center, where property tax disputes are resolved, the coroner’s office, Registrar of Voters office, building and planning, transportation and other departments.

The sheriff’s department, district attorney’s and public defender’s offices, social services and county medical facilities have been excluded from the closures, which are treated as mandatory furlough days for employees.

According to the Department of Human Resources, the Friday closures have saved the county an estimated $585,538, due to a 10 percent drop in electricity usage, an 11.5 percent drop in water consumption and a 1 percent decline in natural gas usage at county offices.

“Although the reduction in the number of days per week that some county buildings are open has resulted in a service reduction to the community, it appears that the public recognizes the county’s need to save money and has adjusted to the building closures,” human resources staff wrote.

According to the department, 89 percent of employees who have signed onto 4-10 schedules since May 2009 have reported “a positive impact (in) the way their department operates.”

According to human resources staff, the expanded, permanent use of 4-10 schedules will help the county hold down overhead costs, while also lowering the amount of traffic on the roads and, therefore, the amount of pollution in the region.

Several supervisors have questioned the consequences of the county’s Friday shutdowns, complaining that residents are being denied services that their taxes pay for.