Mayor Greg Gasataya on Tuesday, March 10, ordered the implementation of a compressed four-day work week for the Bacolod City government aimed at cushioning the impact of volatile global fuel prices and reducing the city’s energy footprint.
Starting March 16, city government offices will transition to a 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday-to-Thursday work schedule, Gasataya said in Executive Order 015, Series of 2026.
The compressed work schedule shall ensure compliance with the prescribed 40 hours per workweek, he said.
Gasataya said offices and departments providing essential and frontline services — such as the City Health Office, City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office, Department of Social Services and Development, City Engineer’s Office, Bacolod Environment and Natural Resources Office, General Services Office, and Public Order and Safety Office — will remain fully operational at all times to ensure the uninterrupted delivery of public services.
Those offices may adopt the 10-hour workday schedule, provided that appropriate shifting and/or skeleton workforce arrangements, as the case may be, are implemented to ensure that services remain available to the public throughout the week, Gasataya said.
The city government will also continue to adopt low-cost energy efficiency and conservation measures, Gasataya also said in his EO.
The Bacolod City government is committed to exercising fiscal prudence by minimizing operational costs and reducing its overall energy footprint, while simultaneously ensuring that the delivery of essential and frontline services to Bacolodnons remains unhampered, accessible, and highly efficient, he said.
Gasataya said the salaries of job order workers and casuals will not be affected by the four-day workweeks.
It will be up to private sector businesses to decide if they will also adopt four-day workweek schedules, he also said.
Gasataya said the Help Desk for families of overseas Filipino workers will remain open at the Bacolod City Government Center lobby.
OTHER LGUs
The Negros Occidental and Negros Oriental provincial governments earlier announced that they are adopting four-day workweek schedules.
Victorias City, Hinoba-an, Talisay City, Escalante City, Binalbagan, Sipalay City, Cadiz City, Kabankalan City, Himamaylan City, San Carlos City, Ilog, and Don Salvador Benedicto have also adopted the new work schedule.*
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