Office Hours Changing For Most Vernon Municipal Departments

VERNON, CT — The town of Vernon is implementing new office hours this summer for certain town departments.

Effective July 5, employees in the town clerk's office, finance department, building department and fire marshal's offices, along with the administration and administrative staff in the Water Pollution Control Department will work longer hours Monday through Thursday. Staffers in those departments will not work on Fridays.

Employees’ total work hours will not change, Vernon Town Administrator Michel Purcaro said.

New public office hours will be:

• 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Wednesday
• 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Thursdays
• The Social Services Department and Probate Court, both in Town Hall, will remain open Fridays from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
• The tax and assessor offices will remain open five days per week

Opening earlier will increase access to town offices and aligns with an analysis of residents’ use of town services, Purcaro said. The move also makes Vernon "more competitive in attracting talent for town jobs," he added.

"Enhancing the work-life balance is important, especially when it comes to recruitment and retention of our valued employees," Purcaro said. "A four-day work week is attractive to potential employees and helps us remain competitive with other municipalities that have moved to this schedule."

He said the town's administration will continue to analyze and work collaboratively with non-union employees and bargaining units on potential schedule changes, "as long as any change is consistent with the needs of the public."