In the Year 2007, When Traffic Sucks, Global Warming: Managers Still Say "No" To Telecommuting.

[The Cleaner]

Note this article is speaking about Federal employees in the DC area but I think it's indicative of most managers' attitudes towards telecommuting.

I grew up in DC and worked there for a number of years and let me tell you, the traffic is horrific. If you choose to take the Metro, you have to get up at 4:00am to get a parking space by 5:30...and it's worse if you live out in the halfway affordable areas like Manassas, Leesburg, or now even Fredrick on the Maryland side. All in all you're talking about 1-1/2 to 2 hour commutes or more. Lots of cars on the road, exacerbating global warming, etc.

I NEVER understood why telecommuting was so eschewed, particularly in DC. Besides wouldn't it save companies money in office space and rent if they enacted telecommuting policies?

Concerns over employee productivity and a lack of control over employee activities make it difficult for federal managers to support telecommuting, according to a survey released yesterday. But federal managers also think telecommuting improves "work-life balance" for employees, and makes their agencies more competitive in hiring and keeping employees, the survey found.
 
The survey was sponsored by the Telework Exchange, which brings federal officials and technology professionals together to promote telecommuting, and the Federal Managers Association, which represents the interests of nearly 200,000 supervisors and managers across government. The survey was underwritten by Tandberg, a company that makes software for video, voice and other data.

Darryl Perkinson, president of the managers association, called the survey "pretty accurate and reflective" of opinions held by federal managers, even though a relatively small number, 214, responded.

Perkinson acknowledged that allowing federal employees to work from home raises difficult questions and is not appropriate for some occupations. He added, "I don't think we need to give up on telework," especially if it could be a job perk that helps the government attract top-notch job applicants or lure back retirees interested in working part time or on projects.

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/22/AR2007012201294.html?referrer=email&referrer=email&referrer=email

[Dr Batsen D Belfry]

1. My company doesn't have an office

We are 100% telecommute, talk on the phone when we need to, and have conference calls once or twice a week.

In 2006 our expenses were somewhere in the neighborhood of 8% of revenues.

DBDB

[unpossibles]

2. brilliant. I wish more people were so progressive

I love the argument "but what's to stop you from goofing off at home?"

To which I (sometimes) reply, "what stops me from goofing on in the office?"

The few jobs I've had where I could occasionally work from home, I saw as a HUGE perk, and worked harder at home than I do in the office.

[The Cleaner]

3. Exactly. That's the paradox

that employers simply don't get. People are typically MORE productive and MORE motivated when working from home.

I did see on a news segment one time a company (I forget which) that has a policy of "come in when you want." Managers reported high levels of productivity, motivation, and satisfaction. And the work ALWAYS gets done. Unfortunately that company is one of the very few to enact this kind of work schedule.

[Dr Batsen D Belfry]

6. Goofing off?

I only get a paycheck if my customers like our product and service. If I goof off, I am pissing someone else off and I will not get paid as a result.

On a good day I work around 9-12 hours. On a bad day, 14+

DBDB

[demnan]

4. I could easily work from home but am not allowed

because a couple of the women in my office complained when I did so. They were doing help desk support and I do Web Development, but it was an envy issue. I think this might drive some of this thinking. You can't drive out the pettiness of lesser skilled employees who believe they deserve all the perks. And the boss always caves in to people like that.

[noamnety]

5. "lesser skilled employees who think they deserve all the perks"

Wow.

[ProfessorGAC]

8. You Don't Think That's Reality?

Geez, everywhere i go, from the grocery store to where i work, there are people with greater skills, higher ability, and generate superior results. Some people are just better at what they do than others, and in some cases have unique skills that nobody else has.

Why the "Wow"? Just wondering.
The Professor

[Coventina]

9. I think you should blame the gutless manager.

I've worked with all sorts of horrible co-workers.

But the underlying problem with all of them is the gutless manager who refuses to address the problem.

What your manager should have told that employee is that she needs to do her own work and mind her own business.

[ellie]

7. I work from home

and it is fantastic. I don't have to worry about the weather, which means no more "snow days" that the people who go into the office get.

[NewJeffCT]

10. A lot of it is about "face time"

If Manager A has 10 people reporting to them and they don't allow telecommuting, all 10 people will have to be there and it will make the impression on Manager A's boss that all of A's employees are working hard 10 hours a day.

Meanwhile, if Manager B has 5 people telecommuting and 5 people in the office, Manager B's boss cannot easily get a handle on the workload of B's staff because he/she cannot physically see all the people chained to their cubicles.

I think telecommuting is slowly becoming more accepted, as there is a Director level person in my department that works from home 3 days a week and it is not unusual for many here to work from home once in a while due to family situations (I did that a few times when my daughter was sick.) In a previous company where I worked, it was very important that you showed up in the office and stayed until an acceptable hour, even if you had nothing pressing to do.