Work Wise UK has designated today (1 November) ‘commute smart day’ – and is urging employers to abandon the 9-5 rush in favour of flexible working times, staggered journeys and part home working.
Phil Flaxton, chief executive of Work Wise UK, which is behind commute smart day, said: “UK workers spend on average 47 working days a year commuting – almost one additional working day per week – and this is on top of the UK having one of the longest working weeks in Europe.
“The additional burden of having to commute in the dark could be the ‘straw that breaks the camel’s back’.
“There is another way. If employers will allow a level of smarter working they may well see an improvement in staff wellbeing, and even an increase in productivity.”
TUC general secretary Brendan Barber said: “Sensible employers already know that they will get the best from their staff if they adopt flexible approaches to working.
“By signing up to commute smart day, employers will not only be helping their staff stay safe, they will also be doing their bit to protect the environment and will be giving their staff greater control over their working lives by offering them more choice over the hours they work.”
The benefits of smarter working are not only for the staff themselves, Work Wise UK says it will also have a beneficial knock-on effect of reducing traffic congestion and public transport over-crowding by extending the rush hour, reducing peak demand.
According to government figures, there is an annual surge in road casualties in November as people struggle to adapt to the darker evenings. In 2005 there were 287 road users killed in October and 319 in November – a rise of 11 per cent.
Accidents peak in the evening rush hour – car users are at most risk of being killed and injured between 4 and 6 pm than at any other time during the week.
Edmund King, executive director of the RAC Foundation, said: “Losing an hour when the clocks go back can lead to lost concentration and worse, lost lives, as commuters struggle to adjust to travelling in the dark.”
Kevin Clinton, RoSPA head of road safety, said: “The clocks going back signal an increase in road accidents. Deteriorating weather conditions combined with dark evenings mean bad news for road users and pedestrians. We support commute smart day as it aims to reduce the need to travel, ultimately cutting down on death and injury on our roads at this particularly dangerous time of the year.”
And, as it’s the week that the Stern Report on climate change was published, Work Wise UK also points out that changing the approach to work can have a beneficial effect on the environment.
“The need to work from nine to five, five days a week, is an anachronism in this modern 24/7 global world: there is no need for it,” said Flaxton.
“The realisation of the damage our working patterns are causing the environment further underlines the need for us to have a workplace revolution so that we can minimise the impact of human activity on the environment.
“This will probably be one of the least costly, and most effective steps that companies could take to make their contribution to reducing emissions.
“Adopting smarter working practices is a win-win situation: not only will it help reduce emissions, it will also provide staff with a better work-life balance and make them more productive.”
