California residents’ budgets are greatly affected by the rising gas prices. According to the research, California gas prices remain the highest in the nation (Brady, 2022). The addition of gas stations makes going to work far away from paying for other needs of low and middle-income working people. While some workers can use public transportation to work, many do not. As a result, employees need support from business leaders, but with no end to rising costs, they may need to think outside the box of inexpensive or no-cost ways to get employees to work without breaking the bank.
Some of the assistance that I would offer as an employer will result in additional taxable income for employees, while others will open doors to relationships within the company. It requires planning and predicting when and where the market will change. “For some companies, a temporary bump in salary or an additional gas allowance per week can ease the burden.” (HR Headaches: How to Assist Employees Who Need Help Due to Gas Price Increases, 2022). I plan to do this as an employer since offering all employees cash benefits, or salary increments is a good idea. Considering that gas prices have doubled in some areas, I would allow employees to work from home half the time, offsetting the additional costs they would have spent on their way to job places.
There are various measures that the government of California can put forward to ease the residents economically during the rise of gas. The government should enforce the use of speed governors in vehicles to prevent aggressive driving. Driving less aggressively reduces fuel costs; not speeding and not accelerating reduces fuel consumption, and the driver will be safer while driving. The government should also encourage the production of lighter cars from factories since they require less fuel consumption to produce driving power (Hammond, 2020).
The government should also expand eligibility and increase the amount of the grant offered by the Gas Assistance Fund to help residents to pay their natural gas bills. The government should introduce gas tax relief and inflation relief. When the above is actualized, the residents will have financial relief during gas prices rise.
References
Brady, S. (2022). California Residents Receiving Stimulus Payments Starting Oct. 7. Forbes Advisor. Web.
Hammond, L. A. (2020). Cars that are lighter, faster and more fuel-efficienct. Driving the Nation. Web.
HR Headaches: How to Assist Employees Who Need Help Due to Gas Price Increases. (2022). Workest. Web.