Although growing numbers of U.S. companies are taking steps to "green up" their operations, those initiatives are being pushed harder these days by grass-roots efforts (no pun intended) by employees seeking to learn more about helping the planet.

"Many organizations are expressing an interest in green practices and, in part, it is coming from their employees wanting to know what they can do to protect the environment," says Dr. Anne Herman, a consultant at the Kenexa Research Institute.

The institute, a Pennsylvania-based HR research firm, finds workers in the United States report feeling more pride in working for their companies when they knew it had implemented green business practices (57%), compared to workers in Germany (46%), France (50%), Canada (46%) and Spain (52%).

Still, the data show U.S. employers need to catch up to their foreign counterparts in officially outlining their environmental position and objectives. This also includes encouraging their employees' creativity to find new ways to protect the environment.

"Although there appear to be opportunities for U.S. organizations to improve their environmental focus, employees who work in organizations that focus on environmental initiatives report stronger pride in the organization," Herman says. "This shows that organizations, even while facing challenges through the state of the economy, can reap the rewards of being environmentally conscious."

A study from Tandberg, a provider of HD video conferencing, echoes Kenexa's findings, revealing that 81% of employees would prefer to work for a company that has a firm reputation for environmental responsibility.

One such company is Berkeley, Calif.-based Bayer HealthCare. As the largest private employer in the area, Bayer HealthCare joined forces with the city of Berkeley in 1992 for a 30-year development agreement, which included an auto-use reduction program.

The company provides free vanpooling for 25 of their 1,500 Berkeley employees with longer commutes and has set up subsidies of $60 a month for mass transit, of which 421 individuals take advantage. They also operate a shuttle to the local subway station for 130 employees daily.

On site, they give preferential parking spaces to those who drive hybrid or low-emission vehicles, and employees who walk to work a certain number of days a year receive $75 to purchase a pair of walking shoes.

The total transportation costs the Berkeley campus $500,000 a year, but a company shouldn't feel pressure to spend that kind of capital.

"You can do things that don't cost money because so much of environmental protection centers on the choices we make every day. There's something we all can do to be a leader in environmental protection, and that's at the organizational level down to the individual level," says Trina Ostrander, manager of the development agreement and community relations with the public policy and communications team at Bayer HealthCare. "It's really important to communicate, 'There is hope, there are options, there's something everyone can do, so let's join together and do the best we can.' That's a great corporate message."

For its environmental fair, Bayer HealthCare has enlisted the support of local utility companies to hand out energy-saving light bulbs, as well as educate employees on cost- and energy-saving initiatives they can apply to their homes. They also have set up a program where employees bring old electronics to work to be recycled.

Such efforts "promote awareness of how we focus on alternative options for the environment, as well as promoting employees to be aware of the environment," explains Sharone Page, chief human resources officer at Mantria Corporation in Pennsylvania. After implementing sustainable practices within the company, Mantria has already inspired three employees to purchase hybrids.

Mantria Corporation, a company focused on sustainable development in a number of sectors, offers a greening voucher of up to $500 for employees who "greenify" their home. The program has a 35% participation rate through which individuals have installed insulation, purchased front-loading washing machines or planted ferns and ivy to naturally filter air.

"My main advice to employers is to have something tangible that becomes part of the [company's] culture," recommends Page, who provides new hires with a 30-page green handbook detailing tips on how to live a sustainable life inside and outside the work environment.

Clif Bar, a maker of organic energy food and drinks in Berkeley, Calif., has ingrained its green initiatives into company culture through incentives and friendly competition.

Launched in 2006, the company's Cool Commute program encourages employees to commute to work via foot, bike, public transportation or carpool. Its $6,500 cash incentive for employees who purchase a biodiesel-fueled, natural gas-fueled or high-mileage hybrid was the nation's first biodiesel incentive program for employees.

The Cool Bike program includes a two-mile challenge that encourages employees to forego driving for trips fewer than two miles. In exchange for biking twice a month, they receive $500 to improve their bike.

The company extended its "Bike to Work Day" to an entire month, during which 70 of the 180 workers on the Berkeley campus formed teams and competed to post the most biking trips. The teams won points, which they could exchange for massages or commuter vouchers, and the winners received a donation to their charity of choice.

According to Jennifer Freitas, the HR manager at Clif Bar, employees appreciate the melding of their personal values and company support. "Sustaining the planet and sustaining our people are our values as a company, and the people who work here share in those values. I think that when you have values aligned, you have happy and engaged employees who are loyal to the company," she says.

Morty Cohen, the CEO of SunRidge Farms in Santa Cruz, Calif., started his company's bike-to-work program after reading about Clif Bar's "because it was the right thing to do." The initiative paid employees $5 each time they rode their bikes to and from work.

The program provides "an opportunity to all members of our team to live respectfully and healthily so that they are able to optimize their performance and lives. In my view, there is no distinction between inside [the office] and out; we're all human beings, and we should live our lives as consciously and respectfully as we can wherever we are," Cohen says.

Buck helps companies green up

Buck Consultants recently launched a practice group that counsels employers on green awareness in the workplace. The group hopes to help employers implement best practices that will improve the environment through reducing, reusing and recycling certain materials.

"We decided to explore what companies might need help with in ascertaining or defining what they want to do in the green space as it relates to HR," says Donald Sanford, managing director of Buck Consultants' communications practice.

The green practice group advises companies on educating their workers about how their behaviors in the office and at home affect the environment. The program offers monthly electronic communications, including newsletters and interactive games, as well as working with companies to appoint green coordinators in local offices to help develop plans and serve as points of contact for green practices.

Overall, green practices implemented by employers will vary depending on the industry. "But what we have seen, which is remarkable and exciting, is that the whole green initiative is becoming part of the vision and mission of the organization. The next step is to make it a part of their living culture," Sanford says.

Green stats make the case for direct deposit

According to the folks at PayItGreen, paying employees via direct deposit has saved U.S. businesses a total of $6.7 billion over the past 10 years, an average annual savings of $605 million — nothing to sneeze at in these tough times.

Breaking it down even further, the organization finds that in one year, if every U.S. employee with access to direct deposit used it, it annually could:

• Save 11,082,971 pounds of paper.

• Avoid the release of 105,709,380 gallons of wastewater.

• Save 4,105,889 gallons of gas.

• Avoid the release of 31,581,675 pounds of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, equivalent to 112,329,703 miles not driven, 1,345,379 trees planted and 13,756,978 square feet of forest preserved.

The ‘Greening of HR’

“The Greening of HR Survey” conducted by Buck Consultants analyzed responses from 93 organizations in the United States, representing a wide range of industries.

The research was conducted during the fourth quarter of 2008 and examines the types of green initiatives employers are using in workforce management and human resources practices. According to Buck, more than 60% of survey respondents have made environmental responsibility part of their organization’s mission statement.

Some common green HR initiatives include:

• 78% using Web or teleconferencing to reduce travel.

• 76% promoting the reduction of paper use.

• 68% implementing wellness programs to foster employees’ proper nutrition, fitness and healthy living.

The survey found employee involvement in green programs dramatically increases when organizations appoint an individual to lead the efforts. For companies with at least three-quarters of their employees actively involved in green programs, 71% have appointed individual leaders, whereas only 29% do not have such a leader. Among companies that provide rewards to encourage green behaviors, 77% provide special employee recognition, 36% give prize incentives, and 14% provide a monetary reward.

Source: Buck Consultants