Greetings employers, 
 
We hope this message finds you well and finding ways to both weather the ongoing shifts to business operations and enjoy the summer. Since our last newsletter, the return to work is reflected rising traffic levels. We've had great reception to our Safe Commute Care Packages - thank you for your nominations and participation. We are continuing to monitor transit-related media, new commute patterns, and fluctuations to traffic and re-open protocol. Below you can also link to an Employer Playbook for Safe Re-Opening that was put together by the state's public health department. If you have any questions or observations to share, our lines of communication are always open!

Next month, we invite you to a Roadmap to Telework webinar for employers who would like to project forward on how to position telework in your long-term operations, strategy, and culture. See below for details and how to register.

We're still curious as to whether the rise in recreational bicycling has or will spill into the commute. Check out a few resources below if your workplace wants to take a deeper look into bicycling as a more robust transportation option for your employees - including a fun Bike Commuter Makeover application!
Stay safe and be well, 
Virada & Rebecca
virada@commute.org
rebecca@commute.org
Roadmap to Telework Webinar
Roadmap to Telework  
Tuesday, August 18
11am-12:15pm  
We’ve received inquiries about how employers can frame and implement a telework policy. This year has tested how we work – where, when, how. But what we are doing now is not formal telework. It’s COVID mitigation to slow the spread of a virus. During this period of mitigation that is likely extending farther into 2021, it is time to begin positioning telework in your long-term operations in a post-COVID future.  

The Roadmap to Telework webinar offers a big picture of starting this process now in gradual steps while there’s time. You are invited to step outside of the pandemic for this hour, hear how one telework policy unfurled in pre-COVID times, and how you can begin to think about your own long-term telework integration.
The webinar will feature Kate Lister of Global Workplace Analytics , authority on the future of work, to offer insights on making the case for telework as business strategy.

As experienced from the sudden shutdown, abrupt changes, shifts, and reversals to workflows can be disorienting, costly, and stressful. The transition into the post-pandemic future does not have to be as bumpy – meaning the celebratory “rush back” to a safe workplace does not have to look like it’s own version of the flood to get the last toilet paper roll from Costco that we saw in the spring.

A COVID-free return to work feels distant and unknown, but it will be a milestone that requires preparation. We are settling into our current routines and can hopefully exit more gracefully, bringing with us the lessons learned during this historic time.

Bike Resources
Pop Quiz
Does your worksite provide employees with bike parking infrastructure?
Yes
No
I'm not sure
Employer Playbook For a Safe Reopening
The State of California's Department of Public Health released a,  Employer Playbook for a Safe Reopening  to provide guidance for employers and help prepare them for reopening their business. The Playbook was created to support a safe, clean environment for workers and customers. The guidance and links in each section are provided to give employers the tools they need to open safely.
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Working Together to Improve Our San Mateo County Commute
Please share with your staff and let us know how we can help! Thanks for your support.