With gas prices on a steep incline across the country, a number of businesses have switched to four-day work weeks to lessen the strain of commuting for employees and USC is considering the possibility.
Jeff Cargile, director of Human Resources Programs and Services at USC, said he was aware the proposal had been in discussion.
Jane Jameson, the vice president of Human Resources at USC, said the university hasn't decided whether to implement four-day work weeks here.
"We have discussed the possibility. It is still under discussion," Jameson said. "We have not reached a resolution on that yet concerning the four-day work week."
The South Carolina Transportation Department switched to 10-hour workdays on June 16 and will continue the program through Aug. 29.
With over 2,100 administrative and engineering employees, this will affect a number of South Carolina residents. Other government agencies across the state are also considering the four-day week.
Keith Musil, fourth-year finance and accounting student, said he believes implementing the four-day week would be a good idea.
"Not only would it help save gas, but it would also give individuals an extra day to spend how they choose." Musil said.
This idea is following the lead of several other states' adoption of the four-day week, including: Florida, Kentucky, Oklahoma and Alabama. The city of Birmingham, Ala. will begin using a four-day week starting July 1.
Kentucky Secretary of State Trey Grayson will also allow interested employees to take advantage of the four-day week due to high gas prices.
At least five counties are implementing a four-day week, mostly for road and maintenance departments, according to the South Carolina Association of Counties.
As the toll of gas prices becomes more of a factor, other institutions are taking the four-day week into consideration.
At the University of Virginia, the biggest employer in the town of Charlottesville, Va., the work week has been condensed to four days to aid employees. In addition to the four-day week, university employees ride free on the Charlottesville Transit buses and are also encouraged to carpool, according to their news station WVIR-TV.
Emily Steele, third-year public relations student, said she thinks a four-day week could provide some benefits.
"It would be helpful with current gas prices and would allow a three day weekend. However, I actually drive more on the weekends, so it may not help me save gas," Steele said.
Other universities have also jumped on the gas-conservation band wagon. Kent State University in Ohio offered a four-day week to its custodial staff to much appreciation.
"We offered it to 94 employees and 78 have taken us up on it," said university spokesperson Scott Rainone.
Other colleges and universities are implementing the program in certain departments including Hampton University, Georgetown University and LeTourneau University.
And with national gas prices averaging around $4.07 a gallon, the change could reduce a single car's gas expenses by 20 percent.
Legislator Wayne Hornsley from Suffolk County in Long Island, N.Y. has proposed Operation Sunshine. This 120 day project, which would switch from five eight-hour days to four 10-hour days, would save 461 barrels of crude oil, Hornsley said.
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