Gas-Saving Moment of the Day: The Four-Day Workweek

Suddenly, I feel like dropping this blogging gig and moving to Utah to work at the Department of Sanitation.

Utah announced that, for the next year, state employees will work four 10-hour days for the same salary. The move is meant to lower energy expenses. Officials estimate it will save money and emissions in numerous ways. For instance, shutting certain offices down on Fridays could save $3 million a year in the state budget, as well as 3,000 metric tons of CO2 each year. According to the Department of Environmental Quality, employees on the four-day schedule could save $300,000 on gas expenditures.

The decision does not affect certain state workers, like state police, prison guards, court workers and employees of public universities. There will also certainly be obstacles. Certain government offices will of course now be closed on Fridays, and commuter bus and train schedules will likely have to be adjusted, along with child-care services for those 10-hour days.

Utah will evaluate the plan’s effectiveness in a year, but if it saves the state money and impacts Utah’s environment, expect a growing trend.

Utah is Going to a 4-Day Workweek (Associated Press)