Gas Prices Ushering In Four-Day Workweeks?

(CBS)  The daily grind -- driving to work five days a week -- is grinding a hole in motorists' pocketbooks with gas prices topping $4 a gallon and showing no signs of heading south anytime soon.

One solution being given a shot by a growing number of companies and government agencies, reports CBS News correspondent Bianca Solorzano, is the four-day workweek.

"(Driving to work is) a lot of out-of-pocket expense before you make any money," noticed one driver.

Under a four-day workweek, Solorzano explains, people put in their usual 40 hours spread over four days instead of five -- and save on the cost of driving on that fifth day.

"If the 20th century was about the five-day workweek, nine-to-five (p.m.), the 21st century is going to be about flexibility," says Michelle Conlin, working life editor of BusinessWeek magazine.

But, she adds, four-day weeks aren't for everyone: "Certainly, for manufacturing lines, for retail, for 24-hour customer service support and things like that, this isn't applicable."

Still, it saves an employee of a Nashville, Tenn. dental office trying it $25 a week.

At Mid-South Community College in West Memphis, Ark., four-day workweeks are in effect for the summer. The campus shuts down on Fridays, saving the school 10 percent on utilities -- not to mention gas money for students and employees.

"When you have things happen in your economy that are as powerful or difficult to deal with as $4 gasoline, it makes you rethink a lot of your strategies," observes Dr. Glen Fenter, president if Mid-South CC.

Some government agencies are switching, as well, and even more are considering it.

Suffolk County, N.Y. just launched a pilot program after a unanimous vote by its lawmakers.

On the web

Pain At The Pump

• AAA: Calculate The Cost Of Your Trip
• U.S. Department Of Energy: Save Gas By Driving Smarter
• USA Today: Hybrids - Cost Vs. Savings
• SF Chronicle: Blame The Falling Dollar

"If we have one-fifth fewer drivers on the road, nationwide, we can save 1.6 million barrels of oil a day," points out Suffolk Legislator Wayne Horsley.

It's also being mulled, among others, by New Mexico for state employees. Gov. Bill Richardson chatted about it with Early Show co-anchor Harry Smith Wednesday.

To see Solorzano's report and the Richardson interview, click on the arrow in the image below:

[keithle1]

Give people as many options as possible. So long as they do their 40 hours a week what does the boss man care? Encourage telework. Some people drive 50 miles each way to the office. Gas is $4.33 a gallon for regular in my neighborhood. Maybe it will be $5 by Xmas. I use public transportation to get to work.

[armydog2]

offshore drilling or even drilling in Alaska will not change the price of gas,enron loopholes and excessive commodity speculations are what is driving up the price of oil. if you think these oil companies will give up their profits because of offshore drilling think again. bush has f-u-c-k-e-d us all over for his oil buddies and himself.

[ixoye_02]

Some folks like to blanket blame anyone who doesn''t go for offshore drilling and exploration. And are too stupid to notice that some republicans also won''t go for the moratorium on offshore drilling. These are the same folks who think that oil is an infinite commodity and that expanding oil infrastructure is the way to go even if it takes 5-10 years to see any relief from oil prices if the US built more refineries. So, we invest in billions of dollars towards building more refineries and drilling/extracting any remaining oil offshore or in ANWR, only to find that the oil supply will dry up within a decade....I would ask, is that being smart and strategic about energy sources OR is this just being short-sighted and foolish to keep oil as a major energy source? I tend to ignore these folks because their arguments are ridiculous and not worth addressing directly.

[noloyalisti]

How can you morons blame Dems for this? Sounds like right wing wackos hit job logic (an oxymoron if ever I heard one). Bush and his neo con men crime family are responsible for this energy policy. They are responsible for fabricating a fraudulent war of terror by allowing the 911 attacks.

And these idiots want four more years with McSame so that the immoral occupation for oil can continue. Go figure.

[omded]

Homeshopper2,
If you''re going to call people names that insult their itelligence, it''s kind of important to make sure you spell those names correctly. I believe you were trying to call people who don''t agree with you "morons", but, by calling them "morans", it doesn''t put a lot of credibility behind your assertation about their intelligence.

That said, the idea of increasing domestic oil production would, at best, bring relief that is only partial, and, most of all, TEMPORARY. Increasing domestic oil production is not a solution to the problem of higher gas prices. The most you could hope it to do is postpone the inevitable day when we''ll all need to conserve our fossil fuels. Conservation is something both you and I will need to get used to.

[mecury69]

Name calling (tree hugging greenies) is pretty embarrassing in this day and age. It may have been cool in the 90''s or when people were in school harassing and bullying others.

But this is the time when this country has to look to the future and it''s not via old technologies like oil based engines and machinery.

Common sense tell you that oil is going to run out and we need to get off the juice sooner rather than later.

Drive your big SUV loud and proud and shove it in the face of the treehuggers.

Then think about the arab who has more money that he can spend laughing it up at the stupid, infintile American oil addicts.

You think BIG in terms of cars, now think BIG in terms of IDEAS!

[darnedsocks]

THE WORKWEEK SHOULD BE REVISED TO 4 DAYS A WEEK, 6 HOURS A DAY...ESPECIALLY SINCE COMPANIES CAN''''T PROVIDE RAISES. IT WOULD ALSO OPEN UP OPPORTUNITY TO PROVIDE A LOT OF PART-TIME JOBS FOR THOSE WHO ARE OUT OF WORK.

ANY ANYONE WHO WORKS ON A COMPUTER, DEFINITELY SHOULD BE MADE TO STAY AT HOME AND USE VPN!

[homeshopper2]

Is that pepperwood or **********???? You treehugging greenies are a bunch of morans!! If you like walking or riding a bicycle you do just that, I on the otherhand prefer to drive something comfortable like a roomy SUV. We need to drill for oil here quick shipping oil that we do acquire here and quit sending it to China and elsewhere. As for Al Gore and living in the State of Tn and yes I did say living here which he really never has if you believe in Al Gore you are really an imbecile his carbon footprint just went up 10% from last year. He doesn''t practice what he preaches, he owns or is affliated with the company that sells carbon offsets. Are you folks out there brain dead from birth or is it something you have recently had happen to you? I have lived in TN all of my life folks here doesn''t like Al Gore, he lost his own state in the election, but if you want to make him richer go right ahead I''m sure he apreciates it. Whatever happened to the last scare of the ice age? Humm! another gimick, you know maybe this is a test to see just how stupid the public really is. If this is any indication we are definetely in trouble.

[vietnam21]

Congressional Democrats were quick to reject the push for lifting the drilling moratorium, saying oil companies already have 68 million acres offshore waters under lease that are not being developed.

BUNCH OF MORON ....

[lochlan-2009]

If you want even higher gas prices,just simply vote democratic.


Posted by b48151

Yeah, but voting republican worked so well for the last eight years.