ILOILO Provincial Capitol and Iloilo City Hall. (Tara Yap)
ILOILO CITY – The Iloilo provincial government and Iloilo City government are shifting to a four-day work week from Mondays to Thursdays as part of austerity measures as fuel prices soar due to the war in the Middle East.
Iloilo Gov. Arthur “Toto” Defensor Jr. and Iloilo City Mayor Raisa Treñas implemented this measure to align with a directive from President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.
Defensor earlier said a four-day work week would be very difficult due to heavy workload in different departments.
But the governor reconsidered after meeting the Community Civil Defense Cluster on Tuesday morning, March 10.
Majority of offices at the Iloilo Provincial Capitol will be closed on Fridays except health, social welfare, and public safety.
Treñas signed Executive Order No.30 on Monday, establishing the protocol which takes effect immediately.
"The order supports national directives on energy conservation amid rising fuel costs and global geopolitical tensions, while ensuring that the delivery of government services in Iloilo City remains efficient and uninterrupted," Treñas said.
According to the protocol, city government employees will work onsite from Monday to Thursday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. On Fridays, they will focus on community engagement, fieldwork, or adopt flexible work arrangements.
Treñas said the energy-saving measures include regulating air-conditioning use, reducing electricity consumption during lunch breaks, encouraging virtual meetings, and optimizing the use of government vehicles.
The strict adoption of an integrated fleet management for city government-owned vehicles was also ordered.
However, essential offices delivering health, social welfare, public safety, transportation, disaster response, and key frontline services, like the offices of the city treasurer, local economic enterprise, and business permits and licensing office, shall continue with their operations under the usual work arrangement.
"Each office/unit/ work station shall designate an 'Energy Efficiency and Conservation Officer' to ensure full compliance with the energy conservation measures," the EO said. (with a report from PNA)