EUGENE, Ore. — Oregon Community Credit Union plans to move most of its nearly 700 employees to a four-day, 32-hour workweek by the end of 2027 while maintaining full base pay and benefits, expanding an approach first tested in its call center in 2023.
The $3.5-billion credit union, known as OCCU, said in a statement that branch hours and phone, chat and digital support availability will remain unchanged. Employees will take different days off to maintain coverage, and executive team members are excluded from the transition.
The expansion follows improvements OCCU reported in employee retention, attendance and member service, reporting that average call center employee tenure increased from nine months before the change to 3.1 years, while the average number of employees absent without advance notice each day fell from five to 1.6.
OCCU also reported improvements in abandoned calls, wait times, transfers and the ability to resolve members’ needs on the first call. Those findings reflect results reported by OCCU.
“Investing in our employees is an investment in OCCU’s future,” President and CEO Greg Schumacher said, according to The Credit Union Connection.
Expansion Includes First Branch Pilot
By the end of 2026, 15 teams encompassing 188 employees are expected to operate on the shorter schedule, according to coverage by the GoWest Credit Union Association. Participating departments include business intelligence, consumer underwriting, video tellers and card services.
OCCU’s Roseburg branch adopted the schedule Oct. 1, becoming its first branch pilot, GoWest reported. The branch is tracking service levels, wait times, appointment availability and staffing coverage to help guide further expansion.
Teams must demonstrate that they can maintain or improve service, productivity and business results before making the transition. The model calls for completing 100% of the work in 80% of the time for 100% of the pay.
Redesigning How Work Gets Done
In its statement, OCCU said it is eliminating unnecessary tasks, improving processes and using technology to reduce manual work. It said the goal is to redesign workloads rather than squeeze the same tasks into fewer hours.
OCCU said it is not reducing staff because of the change or relying on blanket staffing increases.
