Columbus Mayor Robert Smith has reduced work hours for most city employees, an executive decision that became effective Wednesday morning and is expected to last at least through next week, said the city’s Chief Administrative Officer David Armstrong.
Instead of working between 7 a.m. and 6 p.m. Monday through Thursday, employees at most city departments will now work from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on those days, Armstrong said. The police and fire departments, which count as first responders, will follow their original schedule, he said.
The city’s public works department and the garage will operate at a different set of hours, according to a copy of the revised schedule obtained by The Dispatch. Both departments will work from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Thursday next week, Armstrong said.
Whether the schedule will stay in place past next week, he said, is not clear.
“(The situation) is changing every day,” Armstrong said. “To say that we were going to put this out for x number of weeks just (isn’t) really relevant right now.”
Smith made the decision Tuesday as the number of confirmed cases in Mississippi shot up amid the pandemic of COVID-19, a disease caused by the novel coronavirus.
The new schedule remains unchanged after Gov. Tate Reeves signed a shelter in place order that goes into effect this evening, restricting nonessential activities and urging Mississippians to limit travels and stay indoors.
But the revised schedule came as a surprise to some council members, even though they had discussed with the mayor about the possibilities of cutting back city employee hours.
Ward 2 Councilman Joseph Mickens said he was informed of the decision through an email. However, he said, the mayor should have discussed with council members about the details of how the reduced schedule would work.
“We should have been informed,” Mickens said. “We are the council. We are here to do a job.”
Mickens said he did not know if the cutback meant the employees would receive a smaller paycheck; nor did he know how long the revised schedule would last. Apart from questions about the details, he said he also was not sure if the mayor has the authority to pare down city employees’ schedules without consulting the council.
“It’s not a one man show,” Mickens said.
Armstrong said city employees would still get paid full time, even with a lesser schedule.
The mayor’s decision, he said, was warranted under law.
“He has full authority to do that as the chief executive officer of the city,” Armstrong said. “We let all the council members know as a courtesy, but that’s a decision for the mayor to make. That’s not a legislative decision by the council.”
Still, Ward 5 Councilman Stephen Jones said he wasn’t aware of how the decision was made, but wished the council would have been informed in advance.
“If he had that authority I guess he could make (the decision),” Jones said. “But I guess we should have some input.”
Not all council members share Mickens’ and Jones’ views, however.
“(The mayor is) the managing authority,” Ward 3 Councilman Charlie Box said. “Even if we had not talked about it, he would have had the authority to do that, especially under the emergency guidelines that we are operating on right now.”
Smith could not be reached for comment for this report.
As of press time, Mississippi has seen more than 1,100 confirmed cases of the coronavirus disease, with 26 deaths statewide. Cases have been confirmed in Oktibbeha (20), Lowndes (10), Clay (7) and Noxubee (4) counties. One of the 20 cases in Oktibbeha County was a resident at a nursing home in Starkville.
Yue Stella Yu was previously a reporter for The Dispatch.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 43 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.