through which drivers can earn 10% cash back on gasoline purchases when they use a corporate debit card, as well as bonuses: $5 for driving 100 miles, $10 for 175 and $15 for 225. Both benefits will be in place through April., says the record-high gas prices have taken the greatest toll on small businesses and lower-income workers, who “have the most barriers to success.” Some have tried to make the cost of commuting more worthwhile for workers.
“It doesn’t have to be anything grand or elaborate,” Holmgren says. “It’s just taking the time and caring. Take a step back and recognize this is impacting your employees’ quality of life right now.”, agrees, noting that an incentive can be as simple as ordering lunch for employees when they’re in the office or offering them the flexibility to more frequently work from home. And such perks, adds Consorte, can go a long way toward making employees feel valued amid the Great Resignation.
Still, some employers, like New Jersey business owner Michael Toole, say they’re going to wait it out. His company,, sells awning systems in New Jersey and New York and has 14 vehicles that average about 7,000 miles per week between consultations, deliveries and installations. The cost of gas is up nearly $1 in the state, and he says it’s costing his company an extra $1,500 per month.
“It’s definitely a headwind,” Toole says. Though his intent at this time isn’t to make any substantive changes to his business, including how many jobs he assigns workers, he says, “If it's a trend that continues, we are going to have to act on it.”, a fintech company with over $100 million in VC funding, says the question for employers is where to draw the line.
“It's a bigger picture than it just being about gas,” she says, adding that certain expenses, like gas, come with the territory of having a job. “If I work in a bank, I probably have to spend money on dry cleaning, and companies, to my knowledge, have never given dry cleaning allowances. We all have to get to where we have to go.”