Today, work satisfaction plays a big role in employee morale, productivity, and retention that broadly impacts operational performance and the bottom line. Perceived work experience can also make or break a job candidate’s decision to join your team. Painful and exhausting commutes that drain pocketbooks can hurt both employee retention and talent recruitment.

Offering scalable, low-cost commute and remote work solutions to employees can serve many critical business needs. Leverage free resources, tools, and services from Get There Oregon and partners to improve employee commutes and help your workforce thrive and grow.

Why “the commute” matters

Notwithstanding the COVID-19 crisis, employee commutes have steadily gotten longer over the last decade with traffic delays getting worse. Commute pain will continue to resurface with more employers welcoming employees back to worksites. Longer commutes don’t just cost employees time, but money and energy, too.

• More workers commute from farther away due to the lack of affordable housing.
• Commuters now spend 20 more minutes a week—17 hours a year—commuting than they did a decade ago.
• Average commuting costs were up 34% to nearly $3,000 in 2022.
• A 2018 LinkedIn study found that 85% of workers would take a pay cut to reduce their commute time.

And it’s not just employees who “pay” the cost of commuting. Bad commutes present a range of negative impacts on employers from lost employee productivity to hiring headwinds and costly employee turnover.

Employee commute and remote work support and benefits options

The good news in alleviating bad employee commutes is that there are a lot of options that come with all kinds of added benefits. Remote work that reduces commutes helps improve productivity and work-life balance. Employees sharing the ride to work by carpooling or vanpooling can also share the costs. Transit enables employees to save money and get time back they’d otherwise spend driving. Biking affords a host of health and wellness benefits.

There are many scalable, low-cost commute support and benefit options for employers to offer employees. The spectrum ranges from equipping employees with commute options and remote work information and tools to providing onsite amenities, perks, and benefits.

Assessing your employees’ commute needs and interests can help inform what support and benefits to offer. Get There Oregon and partners can provide consultation, identify resources and tools for employee use, and help with employee outreach and commute planning.

You can download the above information as a PDF here.

Need help getting started? Contact Get There Oregon at Info@GetThereOregon.org 

Brand stories are paid content articles that allow Oregon Business advertisers to share news about their organizations and engage with readers on business and public policy issues. The stories are produced in house by the Oregon Business marketing department. For more information, contact associate publisher Courtney Kutzman.

Bring your workforce a smarter way to commute with vanpooling. Vanpools let employees (typically 4-15) who live near each other and have longer commutes (about 20+ miles) share the ride to work and the costs.

It’s a win-win that makes employee commutes better, serves as a retention and recruitment tool, and helps achieve other business goals.

Connect your employees with vanpooling services from Get There Oregon, local partners, and Commute with Enterprise—here’s how!

SUPPORT SERVICES & TOOLS

Tap into comprehensive employee vanpooling support services and tools at no cost:

Get support putting together a turnkey and cost-effective employee program from Get There, local partners, and Commute with Enterprise.

Match employees into vanpools using Oregon’s free online tool Get There Connect and onsite matching support services provided by Commute with Enterprise (see below).

Connect employees with vehicle rental and maintenance, insurance, and roadside assistance from Commute with Enterprise (see below).

Track and report real-time metrics, including vanpool participation, money saved, and reduced CO2 emissions using Get There Connect.

Need help getting started? Contact Get There Oregon at info@getthereoregon.org; 971-202-9758

You can download the above information as a PDF here.

Brand stories are paid content articles that allow Oregon Business advertisers to share news about their organizations and engage with readers on business and public policy issues. The stories are produced in house by the Oregon Business marketing department. For more information, contact associate publisher Courtney Kutzman.

Today’s staffing issues make one thing clear: promoting and supporting your employees’ physical and mental health are more important than ever. Employers play a vital role in creating workplaces that foster employee wellbeing. Workplace wellness promoting healthy habits can improve employee health and job satisfaction, plus there are all kinds of benefits for employers, too.

Supporting active commute options at worksites—bicycling, walking, an d taking transit—is a great scalable, relatively low-cost way for employers to boost employee health and wellness. Read on to learn about the many benefits of active commuting, and how to build support, benefits, and perks into your workplace wellness efforts.

Tips on getting started…

Here are some strategies to start building active commuting support, benefits, and perks into your wellness efforts:

• Ask employees about what types of active commuting support, services, and benefits appeal most to them
• Factor in organizational needs like improving facilities and amenities and reducing employee burnout
• Tap into local resources and programs—like bike safety and maintenance workshops and Oregon’s trip planning and rewards tool Get There Connect that’s available for free to all Oregonians
• Be flexible and make adjustments based on your employees’ needs

Support, Services, & Benefits Options

There are all kinds of active commuting support, services, and benefits to offer employees, including:

• Wellness credits for purchasing equipment and gear
• Monthly financial rewards for logging active commute trips
• Onsite tools like bike pumps and multitools for repairs and maintenance
• Amenities, ranging from secure bike parking to personal lockers and/or shower facilities
• Bike tune-up days
• How-to Information about active commuting and available onsite amenities
• Peer support and tips to help employees start active commuting
• Active commuting information and resources in new employee packets

TROPHIES

Mark your success as a 2023 Best Company with an engraved acrylic trophy. The trophy will have the 100 Best Companies logo and your company’s name. Six window clings are included free with your order.

Price: $225

WINDOW CLINGS 

Show your clients, customers and employees you’re one of The Best with window decals. The 4 inch window cling is affixable to front doors, service vehicles, office windows or any other surface.

Price: $5 each or $50 per dozen.

ORDER BELOW

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For the 100 Best Green Companies, Sustainable Practices questions were incorporated into both the 100 Best Nonprofits survey, conducted April-June and the 100 Best Companies survey, conducted August-November. More than 15,000 employees will take part in these two surveys.

SCORING

Employee ratings on satisfaction with and importance of sustainable practices for 11 survey statements count for 2/3 of each workplace’s overall green score while 15 sustainable practice questions answered by the employer count for the remaining 1/3 out of 300 possible points.

GREEN EMPLOYEE SURVEY QUESTIONS

For each statement below, employees rate:
• Satisfaction with the performance of their company/organization in that area.
• How important that particular item is to their overall satisfaction.

1. Sustainability as part of the company/organization’s mission
2. Rewards and recognition of employee efforts toward sustainability goals
3. Measurement of progress toward sustainability and sharing of results
4. Workplace recycling of paper, glass, metals, packaging and other materials
5. Conservation of water, such as low-flow plumbing fixtures and native-plant landscaping
6. Waste reduction, such as composting, reuse of materials, and minimal packaging
7. Efforts to use use non-toxic, natural materials
8. Support for travel alternatives such as public transit, carpools, telecommuting, walking and bicycling
9. Workplace practice of energy conservation, such as turning off unused equipment and use of compact- fluorescent/LED bulbs and high efficiency appliances
10. Company/organization’s practice of buying local for materials, food, etc.
11. Efforts to incorporate sustainability ethics into the organization’s services and products

GREEN EMPLOYER SURVEY QUESTIONS

Please indicate to what degree your company/organization’s Oregon sites support and promote the following sustainable practices: (No, not at this time / Under consideration / In process / partially done / Yes, fully implemented)

1. Comprehensive sustainability policy with statement of clear goals
2. Measurement of sustainability progress and sharing results internally and externally
3. Employee rewards and recognition for efforts toward sustainability goals
4. Recycling of paper, glass, metals, packaging and other materials
5. Water conservation, such as low-flow plumbing and native-plant landscaping
6. Waste reduction, such as composting, reuse of materials, and minimal packaging
7. Use of non-toxic and natural materials in products, services and in the workplace
8. Sustainable purchasing, such as renting/borrowing instead of owning and selecting products with less environmental impact
9. Alternatives to single-occupancy-vehicle commuting, such as public transit passes, carpools, telecommuting, walking and/or bicycling
10. Purchases or directly utilizes renewable power and/or carbon offsets
11. Energy efficiency and conservation, such as turning off unused equipment and using compact- fluorescent/LED bulbs and high efficiency appliances
12. Sustainable facilities, such as LEED-certified buildings, weatherizing, remodeling with recycled/green materials, installation of solar panels, use of eco-roofs, etc.
13. Environmental stewardship, such as re-planting trees, restoring natural habitat, cleaning up pollution or supporting environmental organizations
14. Buying local materials, supplies, services, etc.
15. Use of supply chain vendors and service providers who practice sustainability

HOW TO APPLY

Companies interested in entering the survey should contact Craig Peebles, project manager, at 100best@oregonbusiness.com. There is no cost to participate.

HISTORY

Sustainability is an important value and sustainable industries are acritical sector in Oregon. And green practices also are key to being a great place to work. To honor that, Oregon Business launched its first annual 100 Best Green Companies project in 2009 and developed survey questions in partnership with The Natural Step USA.

Following the panel discussion, Oregon Business will be recognizing the 2022 100 Best Nonprofits to Work For in Oregon.

Moderator:
• Christen McCurdy, Editor, Oregon Business

Panelists include:
• Kristen Saladow, Director of Membership, Communications, and Advancement, Nonprofit Association of Oregon
• Jennifer Mylenek, Executive Director, CASA of Jackson County
• Scott Kerman, Executive Director, Blanchet House
• Charles Fitz, Operations Manager, Urban League of Portland

Sponsored by:

Program details:
8:30 a.m.-9:00 a.m.: Registration. Coffee and pastries will be provided
9:00 a.m.-9:15 a.m.: Opening remarks from Christen McCurdy, Editor, Oregon Business
9:15 a.m.-10:45 a.m.: Panel Discussion, including Q & A session
10:45 a.m.-11:45 a.m.: Awards presentation for the 2022 100 Best Nonprofits to Work For in Oregon.

Use the following form to purchase tickets to the October 25th Workplace Culture for Nonprofits panel discussion:

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Tap into Oregon’s Get There Challenge, Oct. 3-16—turnkey online employee materials available!

Commuting to work is taking more out of employees’ wallets today with high inflation and gas prices, and, as well, commute distances across Oregon have gotten longer. Axios recently reported that commutes are costing US workers about 35% more as compared to last year. Low-cost commute options and hybrid remote work can help ease employee commute pain, while serving critical business around workforce retention and more.

Tap into Oregon’s 10th Annual Get There Challenge, running Oct. 3-16, to make employee commutes better and boost engagement, retention, health and wellness, and sustainability by leveraging remote work and commute options.

Why work experience and the commute matters for Oregon employers…

Employees can join the Oregon Get There Challenge by signing on to Get There Connect and logging commute options trips and remote work and unlocking knowledge and skill-building achievements to earn points towards weekly and grand prizes. Among the prizes are $500 cash cards, Oregon merchant gift cards, Hydroflasks, and Bob’s Red Mill prize packages.

Get details about this year’s Oregon Get There Challenge here, and spread the word among your employees using turnkey materials available on our online Employer Communications Toolkit that includes pre-written employee emails, breakroom materials and website/Intranet content.

Reach out to the Get There Oregon team, info@GetThereOregon.org, if you have questions or any support needs!

Brand stories are paid content articles that allow Oregon Business advertisers to share news about their organizations and engage with readers on business and public policy issues.  The stories are produced in house by the Oregon Business marketing department. For more information, contact associate publisher Courtney Kutzman.

FREE WEBINAR
WORKPLACE WELLNESS & ACTIVE COMMUTES
Sept. 22 ׀ Noon-1pm

Pandemic-related staffing issues and worker shortages have made one thing clear: promoting and supporting your employees’ physical and mental health are more important than ever. Employers can play a vital positive role in creating workplaces that foster and support employee wellbeing. Workplace wellness programs can improve your employees’ overall health, plus increase retention and productivity, improve morale, and even help attract new employees.

Over the past few years local employers have sought new ways to support employee wellness. One approach has been to promote active commute options like walking and bike commuting, which have grown in popularity during the pandemic. Hear from local experts on how you can create an active commute-friendly work culture and enhance employee health and wellness.

Join Get There Oregon and partners in the next free Thriving Workplaces Webinar Series installment on Sept. 22: Workplace Wellness and Active Commutes.

What you’ll learn:

• How local employers are building into workplace wellness relatively low-cost active commute employee benefits and wellness perks, in addition to supporting use through different onsite amenities and services
• Explore all the different types of active commute options employee benefits and wellness perks that can be added into HR and wellness benefit plans
• Tips and strategies for promoting workplace wellness among your employees, as well as administering benefits, perks, and reward incentives

Featured Panelists:

Stacey Brown, Sr. Well-Being Consultant, Providence Health & Services

Stacey Brown, a graduate of Purdue University, is Senior Well-Being Consultant for Providence with 20+ years of experience working alongside executive teams and employees to build a culture of well-being in both corporate and hospital settings. Stacey helps design the well-being strategy and oversees communications across the organization. She is a powerful force in the workplace and uses her positive attitude and tireless energy to empower core leaders and caregivers with the tools and resources to help them feel like they are cared for and valued. Stacey does this by providing top-notch programs and resources supporting mind, body, spirit, and financial well-being.

Sebastian Garcia, Keen HR Workplace Experience Assistant

Sebastian is a native Hoosier, Indiana University alumni and cycling enthusiast. At Keen, Sebastian works as a Workplace Experience Assistant and is responsible for making Keen a wonderful and eco-friendly workplace, as well as organizing fundraising events. Sebastian participated in organizing the Keen Yard Sale for Love, which was responsible for raising more than 60 thousand dollars to benefit Forest Park Conservatory. Sebastian is a passionate advocate of an active lifestyle and uses his platform as a at Keen to push for more environmentally friendly ways to commute.

Nick Gross, Senior Planner & Bike Commuting Champion, Kittelson & Associates

Nick Gross serves as a Senior Planner at Kittelson & Associates in Portland, Oregon. He has expertise in active transportation planning, bicycle and pedestrian facility design, long-range systemic planning, and public involvement. His work focuses on creating livable communities through the implementation of active transportation infrastructure. As a daily bicycle commuter, Nick plays a key role in creating and maintaining a bike-friendly work culture at Kittelson, as well as supporting employee bike commuting.

If you’re exploring commuter benefits as a tool in your recruiting and employee retention toolkit, then we hope you’ll join us!

Brand stories are paid content articles that allow Oregon Business advertisers to share news about their organizations and engage with readers on business and public policy issues.  The stories are produced in house by the Oregon Business marketing department. For more information, contact associate publisher Courtney Kutzman.

TROPHIES

Mark your success as a 2022 100 Best Nonprofit with an engraved acrylic trophy. The trophy will have the 100 Best Nonprofits logo and your company’s name. 

Price: $200

WINDOW CLINGS

Show your clients, customers and employees you’re one of The Best with window decals. The 4 inch window cling is affixable to front doors, service vehicles, office windows or any other surface.

Price: $4 each or $40 per dozen.

ORDER BELOW

Do you want to target survey questions towards your specific company? Is there a new policy or procedure on which you want you want employee feedback? Do you want additional feedback from your employees?

Customized supplemental survey questions may be right for you.

How it works:

• A company must participate in our traditional 100 Best survey to be eligible for the customized survey option.

• The customized content will appear at the conclusion of the traditional 100 Best survey and will be identified as questions provided by the company.

• The customized content will not count towards the 100 Best ranking. Only the traditional 100 Best questions will be used to tabulate the results.

• Anonymity will apply to the customized portion of the survey as is does to the traditional survey.

• The customized statements will be tied to the company’s unique survey code.

• The custom statements submitted by the company must follow our current satisfaction/importance wording.

For each statement, employees rate:

• Satisfaction with the performance of their company in that area.

• How important that particular item is to their overall satisfaction.

Employees respond on a scale of -3 to +3.

Examples of customized statements:

Implementation of the new hire training provided by COMPANY NAME:

• How satisfied are you?

• How important is it?

My department head provides all resources for me to perform my duties.

• How satisfied are you?

• How important is it?

Implementation of our new overtime policy:

• How satisfied are you?

• How important is it?

Quality of services provided by COMPANY NAME:

• How satisfied are you?

• How important is it?

Ability to provide feedback to your manager.

• How satisfied are you?

• How important is it?

Examples of customized open-ended questions:

• How can we enhance your engagement in the workplace?

• If you oversaw this company, what is the first thing you would change?

• Do you feel your skills and experience are used to your full potential? Please explain.

• What motivates you to give your best at work?

What obstacles are currently in your way in achieving success at the office?

Custom survey pricing includes the following:

• Programming/setup of up to 10 additional, customized statements added to the end of the 100 Best survey.

• Programming/setup of up to 2 additional open-ended questions added to the end of the customized survey.

• 100 Best Companies Comprehensive report based on the traditional survey results.

• Additional report summarizing the results of your customized questions provided by the company, comparing satisfaction and importance.

• Additional report listing the answers to the customized open-ended questions provided by the company.

Cost:

Small company (15-34 employees) $1750

Medium company (35-99 employees) $2500

Large company (100+ employees) $3250

For additional information regarding the opportunity for customized, supplemental 100 Best survey questions, please contact:

Craig Peebles, 100 Best Project Manager

craigp@oregonbusiness.com

503-445-8824

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