The Olongapo City government will shift to a four-day onsite workweek, with Fridays designated for remote work, as Mayor Rolen Paulino Jr. moves to curb rising power and fuel costs.
Executive Order No. 029 mandates a Monday-to-Thursday onsite schedule, with services remaining accessible online on Fridays, in line with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s directive to conserve energy.
“This is a practical approach to reduce operational expenses while maintaining efficient public service,” Paulino told the Manila Standard, noting that the city successfully used the same platforms during the COVID-19 pandemic to sustain service delivery.
The order states that frontline and critical services will remain fully operational through flexible work arrangements despite the compressed onsite schedule. These include health services, disaster response, public safety, garbage collection, and hospital operations.
“There will be no interruption in vital services. Our hospitals, emergency response units, and sanitation teams will continue operating as usual,” Paulino said.
Transport groups, meanwhile, expect lower commuter volume due to the Friday work-from-home setup and have met with the mayor to address its impact.
“We will continue to ply our routes, adjusting the number of units based on demand throughout the day. Operators, drivers, and transport cooperatives are willing to sacrifice,” said Rey Abrenilla, president of the Bataan-Olongapo-Zambales Transport Cooperative Federation, Inc. (BOZTSCI).
Olongapo’s intra-city transport system includes nine color-coded jeepney routes and 12 tricycle zones, supported by several bus operators serving intercity routes.
Abrenilla said the current measures, including government subsidies, are only temporary.
“We do not want a fare hike—we want fuel prices to return to a more manageable level,” he added.
Some operators, who declined to be named, said they have reduced boundary rates for jeepneys and tricycles to help offset drivers’ income losses, but cautioned that this cannot be sustained for long.
City data show an average of 100 to 150 jeepneys operating per route daily, alongside around 2,000 registered tricycles across 12 zones, highlighting the number of operators and drivers adjusting to reduced demand amid rising fuel costs.
