Mandaue City Government Shifts to Four-Day Work Week
In a significant move to modernize work arrangements, Mandaue City Mayor Thadeo Jovito "Jonkie" Ouano has officially signed an executive order implementing a four-day work week for local government offices. The new policy, confirmed by Mayor Ouano's executive secretary, Atty. Riczen Gingoyon, is set to take effect on April 16, 2026, following the order's signing on April 10.
Strategic Implementation and Essential Services
Atty. Gingoyon emphasized that the transition is not a complete shutdown on Fridays. Instead, a skeletal workforce will be maintained to ensure the continuity of public services, particularly in critical and revenue-generating departments. "The mayor's direction is not a total closure. Our vital offices will still be there, and if there are processes to be handled, someone will remain to attend to them," Gingoyon explained.
Essential services such as police, fire protection, disaster response, hospitals, health centers, and social welfare offices will continue full operations, especially during emergencies. Revenue-generating units, including market and slaughterhouse collection services, will also keep personnel on duty to avoid disruptions in city finances.
Flexible Work Arrangements and Employee Protections
Work arrangements will vary per office and division, tailored to their specific functions. Some administrative units may be allowed to work from home, while others, like the Traffic Enforcement Agency, require physical presence. "There are offices that are purely administrative and can opt for work-from-home arrangements. However, there are divisions like the Traffic Enforcement Agency where work-from-home is not possible because they need to manage traffic on-site," Gingoyon noted.
The City Government is also taking proactive steps to protect Job Order (JO) employees from income reduction. They will be compensated for five days of work, with assigned tasks to be completed from home on Fridays. "The mayor is concerned about our Job Order workers. He wants to ensure their monthly income will not decrease. It will still be considered five days of work, and on Fridays they will be paid while working from home with assigned tasks such as budgeting, research, or encoding," Gingoyon added.
Preparations and Future Adjustments
Department heads and supervisors were required to submit action plans and implementation strategies by April 13 to guide the rollout. City officials acknowledge that adjustments may be necessary as this marks the first implementation of such a policy in Mandaue City. "There will be some adjustments since this is our first time implementing this. We are open to refining the system once we see how it works," Gingoyon stated.
Final approval of which offices will fully adopt the four-day work week remains subject to evaluation by the Administration Office and Mayor Ouano, ensuring a smooth transition and ongoing assessment of the policy's effectiveness.
