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Employees who telecommute also need to be aware of the advantages and disadvantages of this style of work before they opt for that type of employment. The purpose of this study is to investigate the pros and cons of telecommuting in the workplace. Both business employers and employees should be aware of the benefits and disadvantages before pursuing the telecommuting option of employment. According to the Ernest Orlando Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, telecommuting is defined as “office-based employees using telecommunications to work at their homes or at a nearby alternative office for a few days each week instead of commuting a longer distance to work” (Telecommuting Research 1). It is hard to formulate an exact number of telecommuters in the United States, but there is roughly 32 million (Langhoff 1). People might ask why companies would allow some or all of their employees to work at home and have no idea what the telecommuting employees are doing. Most employers today do not believe that they have to look over the shoulders of their employees for them to be efficient. People today are realizing that if they are not doing their jobs, the company will find someone who will. Telecommuting is not for all companies or even for all employees. There are some employees that need their employers to look over their shoulders for them to produce their best work (Goodrich 4). Online magazine and newspaper articles were consulted for background information and advantages and disadvantages of telecommuting for both employees and employers. Other Internet websites also offering this kind of information were investigated. Information on the pros and cons was given by a telecommuting employee who experiences these positive and negative effects with his job. The findings of our research will be presented in four main categories: 1) advantages for employees, 2) disadvantages for employees, 3) advantages for employers, and 4) disadvantages for employers. The advantages of telecommuting in today’s work force include setting one’s own hours, having less/no childcare expenses, and reducing stress. The main benefit to employees is the convenience of setting their own hours. People that telecommute can work whenever they want, just as long as they get their workload done. Setting their own hours can be very effective, but they cannot take advantage of this benefit. Some people may be more productive or creative at night or other times that the office would not be open. By telecommuting, people can take advantage of their most productive time by doing their work at that time (ISDN Zone 2). Telecommuting is very convenient for people with children because they can be at home with their children while working, which eliminates the cost of hiring a babysitter. They can stay at home and raise their children while they work. This aspect of telecommuting has helped many successful women that would usually have to quit or leave their jobs because of childcare. Another benefit is that they will not have to take time off from work or ask their bosses for permission to leave work to attend their kids’ events. Sometimes telecommuters can get their workloads done before the due date, and this will give them some free time to spend with their families or on their own (ISDN Zone 3). Telecommuting also eliminates stress and time of driving to and from work everyday, something that most people would like to cut from their daily schedule. Studies show that workers spend an average of one hour per day commuting back and forth from work, which translates into six weeks per year (Langhoff 5). Telecommuting can be a great option for employment, but it has its disadvantages for employees. These cons include household distractions, employee jealousy, work schedule, extra expenses, and work activities. The main disadvantage is dealing with distractions in the home. It can be great for people to be home with their children while they work, but when they have to watch their children all of the time, it is hard to get their work done. While they are at home, they may be tempted to start doing housework instead of office work or other things to put off the work for their jobs. Household distractions are something every telecommuter has to deal with (Cochran). Another disadvantage is that other employees may be jealous of the telecommuters, because they are at home all of the time and they do not have to come to the office very often. Companies have many ways of dealing with the jealousy of employees. Most companies will give the employees extra vacation time and are more lenient about giving regular employees time off for family events. Sometimes employees will have to telecommute because of health reasons. Therefore, there are times when the company has no choice, but to allow someone to telecommute. Another way a company handles jealousy is by allowing the employees that are not telecommuting pick their own hours as long as they are at the office at the core hours. This type of employment is called flextime. Something regular employees have to realize is that telecommuters sometimes have to work longer hours to get their workloads done. Choosing one’s own hours is a big advantage, but sometimes people may have no choice of when they have to work. They have to reach deadlines no matter how much time it takes, while in regular jobs, people work their set number of hours and they are done for the day. When people telecommute, they will have deadlines and sometimes those deadlines are very difficult to make. Telecommuters might work six out of the seven days of the week just to reach a deadline; it all depends on the workload given to them. Telecommuters might have to stay up all night just to make their deadlines. Many times that they may not be able to choose their own hours (Cochran). Additional expenses that employers sometimes do not pay for are another disadvantage for employees. When people work out of their homes, many times they will have to provide their own office supplies, ranging from large items like computers to small items like paperclips. The supplies a telecommuter needs depends on what his or her company does and what job he or she is assigned. Some companies will pay for some of their telecommuters’ expenses, such as the Internet connection, telephone bills, computers, and other office supplies. However, there are some companies that make telecommuters pay for everything, even computers (McKinney 4). Working alone is another disadvantage of telecommuting. Because they are working at home, telecommuters miss out on the social aspect of working for which June Langhoff coined the term “watercooler withdrawal” (Langhoff 8). In essence, employees are not around other co-workers to gossip and keep up-to-date at the water cooler. The team concept is used in many companies today. Telecommuters lack the benefits and experience of teamwork because they work alone. Telecommuters are never a part of the team concept, unless they occasionally go to the office or if they have teleconferencing quite often. They have to complete the workload by themselves. That means they have to do everything without having help from other employees. Telecommuters may have the stress of being on their own, and if they need help, they may have to go to the office to get their questions answered by their employers (Cochran). Employing telecommuters offers benefits to the employer, as well as the employee. These benefits include retention of employees, reduced costs, increased productivity, and no OSHA regulations. The main advantage of employing telecommuters to employers is that they find it easier to keep employees with their companies (Ridder 1). If the employee finds it easier to work at home for numerous reasons, companies can offer this option of employment to employees and keep the employees happy with their jobs. Employers can also save time and money by not hiring a new employee because a former employee quit because of the commute to work or trying to find someone to look after the children. According to June Langhoff, “…companies can realize replacement cost avoidance of $7,920 per teleworker” (Langhoff 1). Because of these factors, employers find that offering the telecommuting type of employment can be beneficial to their recruitment and retention of new employees. Many people find it easier to stay at home with their children than to find babysitters to watch over their children. If parents can save money to pay for childcare and also the money to commute to work, they may be able to work for less pay since the employer offers telecommuting. This could help many businesses from the financial aspect. In addition, a business saves office space because employees are working at home. Now an employer can pay less money to lease space for their work or to build a smaller building. The employer now only needs to have access for the employee to the business that is needed for them to log on to the company’s computer files. This can save a tremendous amount of space, and as a result, money for the employer (The Telecommuter 2). Most employers report that their employees get more work done outside of the office environment (McKinney 1). According to the 1999 Telework America National Survey done by Joann H. Pratt Associates, companies may gain on an average $1,850 per teleworker because of increased productivity (The Telecommuter 3). There are several possible reasons for this increase, including fewer interruptions, fewer sick days, and no travel time to get to and from work (Moskowitz “Cash” 1). Until recently, companies were required to make sure that telecommuters’ homes met the Occupational Safety and Health Administration requirements of all workplaces. However, OSHA has recently changed its stance on the issue and its policy now states “OSHA will not conduct inspections of employees’ home offices. OSHA will not hold employers liable for employees’ home offices, and does not expect employers to inspect the home offices of their employees. If OSHA receives a complaint about a home office, the complainant will be advised of OSHA’s policy….but will not follow-up with the employer or employee” (OSHA Directives 5). This is a benefit to employers because it eliminates the need for them to inspect and correct employee workstations, which costs them time and energy. The idea of telecommuting sounds so simple, but it is not perfect. There are a few disadvantages of companies having employees work away from offices, including new expenses, difficult transfer of information, security of company information, and availability of the employee. The companies that allow employees to telecommute may need to provide the employee with the materials needed to work from home. First of all, they need to be in contact with the company at all times if necessary and, in most cases, they would need a phone line to the employee that is free to call at any time. The solution to this is a second line directly to the employee’s workspace in the home with an answering machine or voicemail. Another necessity would be a computer with Internet access for the employee so they can look at company files and also read e-mails sent by the individuals at the workplace. Some other needs may be a fax machine or cell phone. Many companies are using the employee to curb these costs and are requiring that the employee that is telecommuting to buy these materials, but other companies take on these expenses themselves (York 3). Many companies have most of the files that employees need to do their work in their offices. This causes a problem for the company to find a way to get these materials to their employees. The way that most companies do this is by using the Internet. It allows the telecommuter to log on to the company’s server and look at these files and share work with other individuals in the company. Another way is to fax the needed materials to the worker over the phone. The only problem with this is the time it takes to receive a fax. In today’s advancing age of technology, the main problem with having information available on the Internet is the need for excellent security. The company must allow employees access to files, but this also opens the door for computer hackers. These hackers try to get into the information on the Internet and look at it or interfere with it. This may cause problems for the company and/or the employee. Because they need to keep their information secure, companies need to install several levels of protection of their information (York 4). The idea of the employee that is not in the office brings in the problem of contacting the employee when information or questions need to be answered. With employees at the office, the employer can get in touch with their workers fairly easily, but this is usually not the case with telecommuting employees. Because most telecommuters set their own hours, they may not be available when the employer tries to contact them. Also, if the telecommuter is using the phone line to do his or her work, the employer will not be able to reach them because the line will be busy. The way to at least partially solve this problem is to have an extra phone line available just for business calls or a cell phone and possibly call waiting when the telecommuter is away from the office. Telecommuting is a prevalent business practice today, so both employees and employers need to be aware of the advantages and disadvantages of this form of employment. Telecommuting advantages for employees include setting one’s own hours, having less/no childcare expenses, and reducing stress. Some disadvantages for telecommuting employees are household distractions, employee jealousy, work schedule, extra expenses, and work activities. Employers also experience both pros and cons when hiring telecommuters. Advantages for employers include retention of employees, reduced costs, increased productivity, and no OSHA regulations. Telecommuting also poses some disadvantages, such as new expenses, difficult transfer of information, security of company information, and availability of the employee. By being aware of all possible benefits and disadvantages of telecommuting, both employees and employers can make informed decisions about choosing this type of employment, and they can also recognize these effects ahead of time so that they are able to deal with them effectively. Cochran, Richard. Interview. Schwan’s 17 February 2001. Ridder, Knight. “Out of Sight, Out of Mind?” Tribune Business News. 30 January 2001. Webspirs. 8 February 2001. Goodrich, Jonathan. Florida International University. 8 February 2001 *http://www.fiu.edu/choice.html*. ISDN Zone. “Telecommuting and ISDN.” Eicon Technology Corporation. 7 March 2001 *http://www.isdnzone.com/*. Langhoff, June. Telecommuting. Last updated 28 February 2001. June Langhoff’s Telework Resource Center. 8 March 2001 *http://www.langoff.com/*. McKinney, Leon. “Telecommuting: A Win-Win Solution When Done Right.” Home Business Magazine Online. 8. 7 March 2001 *http://www.homebusinessmag.com/*. Moskowitz, Robert. “Cash for Telecommuting.” Smartbiz. 7 March 2001 *http://www.smartbiz.com/*. OSHA Directives Home Based Worksites. Latest update 25 February 2000. 6. Occupational Safety & Health Administration. *http://www.osha-slc.gov/*. Ridder, Knight. “Out of Sight, Out of Mind?” Tribune Business News. 30 January 2001. Webspirs. 8 February 2001. Telecommuting Research. 3. Ernest Orlando Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. “The Telecommuter.” Officetec. 8 February 2001 *http://www.officetec.com/*. York, Thomas. “Telecommuting Causes, Solve Problems.” Online posting. 2 June 1999. CNN. 1 March 2001 *http://www.cnn.com/*. Aiken, Jonathan. “OSHA Exempts Telecommuters From Home Inspections.” Online posting. 27 January 2000. CNN. 8 March 2001 *http.www.cnn.com/*. Emling, Shelley. “Many Offers to Work at Home Are Rip-Offs, But Some Aren’t.” Webspirs. 30 January 2001. Gondo, Nancy. “Web-Meeting Software Helps Offices Confer on the Cheap.” Investor’s Business Daily. 2 February 2001. 8 February 2001 *http://www.prnewswire.com.* Konrad, Rachel. “Employers, Workers Begin To Hang Up On Telecommuting.” C-Net. 15 November 2000: 1-4. 8 March 2001 *http://www.cnet.com/*. Martinez, Amy. “Sometimes, Working at Home Doesn’t Work.” The Palm Beach Post. 29 January 2001, Business News section. Webspirs. 3 February 2001. Moskowitz, Robert. “Tips For Telecommuting Productivity.” Smartbiz. 7 March 2001 *http://www.smartbiz.com/*. “OSHA Exempts Home Offices.” Online posting. 27 January 2000. IVillage.Com. 9 March 2001 *http://www.allhealth.com/*. Rosencrance, Linda. “Telecommuters Exempt From OSHA.” PC World. 27 January 2000: 1. 8 March 2001 *http://www.pcworld.com/*. Rosencrance, Linda. “Work From Your Home, Safely.” PC World. 5 January 2000: 1. 8 March 2001 *http://www.pcworld.com/*. ii. Having Less/No Childcare Expenses ii. Difficult Transfer of Information iii. Security of Company Information Bibliography: c. Advantages for Employers i. Retention of Employees ii. Reduced Costs iii. Increase in Productivity iv. No OSHA Regulations d. Disadvantages for Employers i. New Expenses ii. Difficult Transfer of Information iii. Security of Company Information iv. Availability of the Employee III. SUMMARY Word Count: 2917
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