$2b reasons for flexi-work

JAMAICA’S approximately 114,000 public servants could save nearly $2 billion annually in transportation costs if more of them are allowed to work remotely under flexi-work arrangements. This point was emphasised by representatives of the Ministry of National Security and Peace during their appearance last Wednesday before Parliament’s Economy and Production Committee to discuss the progress of flex-work arrangements in Jamaica. A PowerPoint presentation from the ministry’s team, which was shared with the media afterwards, painted what it called the “big picture” involving public sector workers and the costs associated with their daily commute.

It shows that it costs between $12,000 and $24,000 weekly for each public servant to get to and from work. A remote worker organises tasks on a board for a flexible, hybrid work week. With vacation and other days off, it is estimated that each public servant spends between $456,000 and $912,000 annually to get to work.

For all public servants combined, the annual figure is between $1.3 billion and $2.7 billion. The document argued that if public sector employees were allowed to work from home two days each week, they would each save between $4,800 and $9,600. Across the entire public service, workers would collectively keep between $547 million and $1.9 billion in their pockets annually.

It emphasised that each of these workers is spending between $12,000 and $24,000 every week to get to and from work. The ministry said its embrace of flexi-work arrangements is in response to fuel-price pressures and is aimed at modernising work and strengthening public sector resilience. The security ministry’s team underscored that more people working from home meant an overall smaller fuel bill.

The document referenced a study which shows that 10 minutes of creeping or idling in traffic burns between 300 and 500 millilitres or more than one to two cups of petrol. Hourly idling while stuck in gridlock sees an average car wasting 0.5 litres to 1.3 litres of fuel per hour, while larger vehicles burn between 1.5 litres and 2.5 litres. The ministry team cited the negative effects of gridlock on the ec…