Alexandria Fire Chief Details Shift To 50-Hour Work Week

ALEXANDRIA, VA — Employees of the Alexandria Fire Department will see a shift to a 50-hour work week, one of the items specified under the collective bargaining agreement.

The collective bargaining agreement was finalized in early 2023 with a funding commitment by Alexandria City Council. While the agreement runs from July 1, 2023 to June 30, 2026, the hours reduction was targeted for a phased implementation. The agreement called for a path to reduced shifts from 56 to 50 hours per week by July 30, 2025 with support from funding for new positions.

The original plan to get to a 50-hour work week was providing a "Kelly Day," which is a required day off for firefighters, Fire Chief Felipe Hernandez Jr. told Alexandria City Council on Tuesday.

"It was probably going to cost us an increase in cost, but also it was going to continue to increase overtime, but also holdovers," said Hernandez. "So basically, what it came down to, it made no sense for us to follow a process that wasn't successful, to go down that path."

With approval from the city manager's office, the fire department is instead moving to a fourth shift schedule with an added "debit day" that employees would work. The fire chief said the fourth shift provides the foundation for a 42-hour work week with an extra work day every 24 days, providing an average of a 49-hour work week. The change will be in effect by July 31, 2025.

"What's nice about that schedule is it allows more time, so 48 hours off in between shifts, where before they only have 24 [hours]," said Hernandez. "So basically it's improvement in health and wellness, more rest for them, but also the ability, if they want, instead of working in 12-hour overtime, they can still now work a 24-hour overtime and still have 24 hours to recuperate and come back."

Hernandez says the transition from three shifts to four shifts is the "hardest part of this whole process." He said the change will shift about 50 to 60 employees from their current schedules and may impact some employees' vacation plans.

In fiscal year 2025, the fire department promoted 40 employees, and the fire chief attributed about half to work schedule needs. The other half were promotions deferred from previous years.

The fire department has also seen improvements in staff vacancies. Hernandez said the vacancy rate stands at 1.7 percent. The attrition rate, referring to employees lost and not replaced, was as high as 3.3 percent last year and is down to 1.1 percent. The fire chief said four additional employees have since returned to the Alexandria Fire Department as well.

The fire chief believes Alexandria is one of the first localities in Virginia to implement the fourth-shift system and believes it will help with recruitment and retention.

"That schedule has been very well received by the membership," the fire chief said. "They're very excited about it. They're very appreciative of the opportunity given to them to move forward in that schedule."