Charity campaign to revive interest in staggered hours
EMPLOYERS will be urged to allow staff to work outside regular hours as part of an innovative campaign to be launched next month by the Staggered Working Hours Committee and The Community Chest.
The 'Staggered Hours Week', from December 18 to 22 (Monday to Friday), will revive interest in staggered working hours while also raising money for charity, according to Rob Noble, marketing and planning director of the Mass Transit Railway Corporation. Mr Noble is also the chairman of the Staggered Working Hours Committee. The committee, formed in 1991, comprises five major transport operators - the MTRC, Kowloon Motor Bus Company, Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation, Hong Kong Ferry Holdings and Citybus.
According to Mr Noble, Staggered Working Hours concepts enable employees 'to start and finish work at different hours, and surveys have shown that it helps improve staff and also increase productivity'.
Organisers of the Staggered Hours Week hope to raise about $8 million for The Community Chest.
Mr Noble said he hoped employers would encourage staff to support the campaign and see for themselves the benefits of the concept.
He said a specially designed souvenir pass priced at $80 would be available for those employers who would be interested in encouraging staff to support the campaign next month.
Individuals will have to buy the passes through their companies. Pass holders are eligible for free rides on seven modes of transport - Citybus, Hong Kong Ferry, KCR, KMB, LRT, MTR and Peak Tramways.
Only 100,000 Staggered Hours Week passes will be issued.
Mr Noble said the Staggered Working Hours idea had yet to be accepted on a wide scale in Hong Kong, although it was a long-term solution to severe rush hour congestion.
MTRC project manager Adela Liew said that while the concept provided employees with more freedom to organise their day-to-day activities, it could also be seen as a marketing tool that employers could use.
'It will also help [employers] in recruiting staff and retaining staff. It's a selling point and it is one of the perks that companies can give their employees, instead of financial incentives,' Ms Liew said.
Mr Noble said the Optional Staggered Working Hours concept was the most suitable for Hong Kong. Under this system employees would be allowed to choose from several options the hours they preferred to start and finish work.
'This is considered the best system for Hong Kong since it balances flexibility for staff with reasonable control for employers,' Mr Noble said.
Implementation of other Staggered Working Hours concepts such as Flexitime, would be difficult for human resources managers to monitor, he said. Flexitime had been tried in Hong Kong 'but not with good results', Mr Noble said.
Under this method employees can decide on a day-to-day basis when they will start and finish work, although employers can schedule certain times when all employees must be at work.
Mr Noble said it had been difficult to convince many companies to adopt the Staggered Working Hours concepts.
'Companies do not see big enough benefits to warrant the effort. A lot of the companies that are practising any form of Staggered Working Hours are international companies that have had experience with the concept overseas, and therefore they are receptive to the idea in Hong Kong,' Mr Noble said.
'Transport operators have been increasing the fare discounts for passengers who are prepared to travel before or immediately after the peak period.
'This discount idea could well be extended in future, which will reinforce the benefits to employees following Staggered Working Hours systems. We are hopeful that gradually more companies will participate.'
