Because of language in our collective bargaining agreement indicating the workday must be 8 hours in length, the CCMEO investigations unit lost our 4-day-on/2-day-off workweek. The 4/2 schedule is preferred by most of the investigative staff for the following reasons:

1) An extra half-hour to the workday means there is an overlap from shift to shift, allowing those coming on to be properly briefed and those going off to wrap up what they’re doing with fewer distractions.

2) A 4/2 schedule means more days off. Even factoring in the extra half-hour, we end up with 15.25 more days off per year compared to our current 5-day-on/2-day-off schedule.

3) More days off means less time commuting and fewer travel expenses.

4) It’s often easier to get things done with rotating days off. Fixed weekend days off means bigger crowds, longer lines, and a harder time getting appointments without taking leave during the workweek.

5) Consistent adequate weekend staffing. Whereas the current fixed weekend off configuration means the office is frequently short investigators on our busiest days (Monday and Friday).

The union has been telling us that the collective bargaining agreement can't be changed without actually telling us why. While it is technically true we can't remove or change anything already in the contract, we CAN leave everything as is and add an addendum saying, "The normal workday shall be eight (8) consecutive hoursor eight-and-one-half (8.5)consecutive hours for the Office of the Medical Examiner."

An addendum is a simple document to write up and if we can get a majority of investigators to sign this petition we can make it happen.