Fight for Flexibility as Californians Get Back to Work

As California begins to slowly reopen the economy, the Valley Industry and Commerce Association (VICA) supports efforts to create flexible schedules for employees as they begin to return to work and transition into a new normal of physical distancing, transit distancing and hybrid school schedules.  
 
Over the years, VICA has supported legislation to add employee flexibility to offer new ways to complete a 40-hour workweek, from 5 days/8 hours per day to alternatives such as 4 days/10 hours per day while paying overtime for hours worked beyond 40 hours per week.  
 
As workers begin to return to the workplace, COVID-19 will require us to adopt new safety measures, including physical distancing. For those who commute to work via public transit, it will be important to have a flexible schedule in place in order to prevent overcrowding buses and trains.   
 
Traffic has significantly dropped with many individuals working from home. This has had a positive environmental impact as greenhouse gas emissions have been reduced with less vehicles on the road. Flexible scheduling will ensure vehicles are on the road less often, allowing us to continue this positive environmental trend.   
 
Schools throughout California will not be reopening in the near future. Many school districts have already announced that they will be moving to virtual classes and a hybrid in-class model that will allow for social distancing. Without childcare or open schools, parents will need to stay home some days with their children. This means many parents will not be able to return to work without flexibility in their schedules. 
 
Flexible scheduling would allow an employee to choose how many hours per day they want to work, as well as how many days. Flexible scheduling will benefit employers, providing the ability to meet their employees’ demands without causing difficulties to that employer. 
 
It is imperative, now more than ever, to approve flexible scheduling legislation as we continue to face the COVID-19 pandemic and as we look towards safely getting Californians back to work.