GONZALES — Every weekend will soon be a 3-day weekend for City of Gonzales employees, Mayor Timothy Riley announced in a statement.

Starting Aug. 4, city employees will work Monday-Thursday with City Hall operating from 6:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. 

Mayor Riley said in the statement that he believes the switch will result in cost savings for the city, as well as an increase in employee productivity and satisfaction. Riley cited studies from the American Psychological Association and the World Economic Forum that found four-day work weeks improve employee retention, reduce absenteeism, increase revenue gains and boosts physical and mental health. 

Riley tried to switch the city to a four-day work week in March, but was shut down by the city council. According to Riley's statement, the new work-week plan addresses each of the council's concerns, such as residents who pay utility bills having their services cut off for non-payment.

"We'll always have someone on standby. We have the online, and then if a situation arises where a Friday ends up on a cut-off day, no one will be cut off. We will notify everyone that following Monday and get everything ratified or fixed," Riley told WBRZ.

The new work-week adds 30 minutes to the beginning and end of the city's daily hours of operation. Riley asserts that utilities will not be cut off for non-payment on Fridays "in any event."

The Ascension Parish Government made a similar shift in 2024. Riley said he spoke with parish leaders who reported positive responses to a four day work week. Parish Communications Director Pamela Matassa provided the following statement to WBRZ:

“Ascension Parish Government moved to a four-day workweek in January 2024, and it’s been a smart and well-received decision. More than half of our staff, like our DPW and drainage crews, were already working four 10-hour days, which aligned the rest of our team. We also noticed that foot traffic on Fridays was minimal, and most of those in-person visits were for information already available online. The response from both our employees and the public has been overwhelmingly positive.”