Emailing "Four-Day Workweek"
For many in the US, this is a four-day work week because of the Memorial Day weekend. But there's a new trend of companies considering workweek compression to help employees cope with rising fuel costs.
Other countries may scoff, but higher gas prices in the US means that drivers' wallets and pocketbooks are draining at alarming rates at the petrol station. Part of the reason is that our highways are packed with relatively inefficient SUVs and plush, full-sized cars. The other reason is that we drive
everywhere, usually by necessity.
Some employers have noticed, and they're giving their staffs the option to work four, 10-hour days instead of five 8-hour days, effectively cutting their commuting costs (fuel-wise at least) by 20 percent and putting a dent in CO2 emissions.
Reuters reports on organizations that are compressing their work weeks, such as Kent State, which is offering the option to its custodial staff and Neighborhood Development Services in Ohio.
Staff at Neighborhood Development Services in rural northeastern Ohio were talking about quitting to find work closer to their homes when executive director Dave Vaughan stepped in with offers to compress their work week.
"I didn't want to lose people," Vaughan said of the program, which more than half of his 19 employees began last week. "In rural areas like we are, gas price increases are more challenging because we don't have the mass transit alternative -- we can't jump on a bus or take a train."
Eventually, Vaughan hopes to close the office one day a week, further reducing energy costs.
It's interesting that he mentioned employee retention as a factor. Firms that offer telecommuting may just yank some talented, eco-minded workers from your payroll.
But flex-hours and telework present challenges for businesses, particularly security-conscious ones. Just a couple of days ago, we published
this article by Sonny Discini that offers advice on securely and effectively instituting telework programs from an IT perspective. It's filled with great advice on jump-starting your own telework programs.