Telework & Flexible Work Schedules

Telework

Telework is the use of digital technologies to allow people to work from a location other the central office or primary duty location (bringing work to people rather than bringing people to work). Telework not only eliminates commute trips, it also provides continuity of operations for organizations and worksites during extreme weather conditions, disasters, or other abnormal circumstances.;

Executive Order re: Telework In 2001 the Governor of Washington State signed an executive order establishing the Washington State Telework and Flexible Work Hours Program.

Compressed Work Week

Alternative work schedules are becoming desirable to many employees. By allowing employees to adjust their work schedules, companies are not only able to recruit and retain valuable employees, but they also make it possible for them to completely eliminate commute trips on certain days by compressing their work weeks.

Typical Compressed Work Schedules

• 4/10 work week- Forty hours are worked in four 10-hour days, thus reducing the employee’s commute trips by 20 percent.
• 9/80 work week- Eighty hours are worked in nine days with the tenth day off, thus reducing the employee’s commute trips by 10 percent.
• 3/12 work week- Thirty-six hours are worked in three days, which means the employee commutes two fewer days than the typical 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. worker.

Employers generally report a reduction in tardiness and absenteeism for employees on compressed work weeks and flextime. This is attributed to the employees’ ability to commute outside of the rush hour and their increased flexibility in scheduling appointments and errands.

Flex Time

Flex-time offers employees varying times to arrive and depart from work without changing the number of their daily work hours. While flex-time does not in itself eliminate drive alone commuting, it enables employees to take advantage of biking, carpooling, vanpooling, or riding the bus.