Finding another way

AS many nine-to-five workers spend hours stuck in traffic every day, some companies are exploring unconventional ways to minimise the environmental impact of their employees by decreasing their time spent on the road.

Here are some flexible options that companies can adopt to play their part in decreasing the carbon footprint:

Offer flexible work hours where possible. Shifting employees’ work schedules means they leave work earlier or later than the masses and avoid sitting in rush-hour traffic.

Commuting during off-peak hours could help them save on fuel and reduce emission of harmful gases into the air.

Where possible, allow employees to work from home. Set up qualification criteria for this option.

For instance, mothers with children under two could work from home and care for their children at the same time.

Even allowing employees to work from home one day each week can reduce their commute-related carbon footprint.

Start an Alternative Wheels day where employees are asked to take a set of nonmotor-powered wheels to work.

Biking, riding scooters, ridesharing (through ridehailing apps), carpooling among coworkers and even rollerblading are all viable alternatives to driving alone to work.

Encourage employees to take public transport. Major cities in Malaysia are usually well equipped with public transit facilities and travel routes are comprehensive yet efficient.

Besides, you can introduce a reading culture among your employees as they can spend their commute time going through recommended reading material.

Try a four-day work week. You can modify employees' working time to fit 40 hours in four days instead of five.

Unofficially called a compressed work week, a four-day work week means employees commute during periods of less traffic congestion and, as a bonus, you get a long weekend, every weekend.