Telecommuting
5 W/ W; A5 m$ P$ X Telecommuting-- substituting the computer for the trip to the job ---- has been hailed as a solution to all kinds of problems related to office work. # A% G0 f* @% E$ \5 v8 V
For workers it promises freedom from the office, less time wasted in traffic, and help with child-care conflicts. For management, telecommuting helps keep high performers on board, minimizes tardiness and absenteeism by eliminating commutes, allows periods of solitude for high-concentration tasks, and provides scheduling flexibility. In some areas, such as Southern California and Seattle, Washington, local governments are encouraging companies to start telecommuting programs in order to reduce rush-hour congestion and improve air quality.
4 ?( D5 @+ e! `; @: ^! T But these benefits do not come easily. Making a telecommuting program work requires careful planning and an understanding of the differences between telecommuting realities and popular images.
& s5 x ]. P' G# q& L0 o Many workers are seduced by rosy illusions of life as a telecommuter. A computer programmer from New York City moves to the tranquil Adirondack Mountains and stays in contact with her office via computer. A manager comes in to his office three days a week and works at home the other two. An accountant stays home to care for her sick child; she hooks up her telephone modern connections and does office work between calls to the doctor. * m, g7 L1 w, \$ r
These are powerful images, but they are a limited reflection of reality. Telecommuting workers soon learn that it is almost impossible to concentrate on work and care for a young child at the same time. Before a certain age, young children cannot recognize, much less respect, the necessary boundaries between work and family. Additional child support is necessary if the parent is to get any work done. ) ] x7 A. t3 R" z* c
Management too must separate the myth from the reality. Although the media has paid a great deal of attention to telecommuting in most cases it is the employee’s situation, not the availability of technology that precipitates a telecommuting arrangement.
8 t& K1 _! z9 B9 l) z6 _That is partly why, despite the widespread press coverage, the number of companies with work-at-home programs or policy guidelines remains small. |