By Natalie Lisik, CDMP

Are your employees rolling out of bed, grabbing a cup of java and heading to their office in pajamas? If not, some of them may be in the near future to help you save money. Companies that currently have a work at home—or telecommuting—program are reaping the benefits in more ways than one.

According to the report, Workshift Canada: The Bottom Line on Telework released by the Calgary Economic Development in April 2011, part-time telecommuting could have a bottom line impact of $53 billion per year in Canada including $10,000 for each two day-a-week teleworker by converting the 44 per cent of Canadian jobs that are telework compatible. On a large scale telework could exert substantial social and environmental benefits.

While it is an opportunity for an employer to consider an innovative and modern approach to address workplace issues, there are pros and cons that need to be considered by an employer when creating a telecommuting program.

The term “telecommuting” or “telework” was coined in the 1970s by Jack Niles, a former rocket scientist who was looking at ways to eliminate traffic congestion. “Tele” comes from the Greek word meaning “from a distance” and when combined with work becomes “work from a distance”. With the advancement of technology and expansion into global markets, working at home has been a part of thousands of companies’ day-to-day operations for many years.

Enhanced organizational flexibility, improved work productivity, and reduced commuting time for workers are a few of the benefits of telecommuting. Growth of telework is justified by changes in urbanization, rapid technology progress, growth in knowledge-producing jobs, spread of virtual operations, and in the labour supply that demands a more flexible work style for work-life balance.

There is an unemployed workforce of 350,000 disabled persons in British Columbia according to the Ministry of Advanced Education and Labour Market Development. Some of these persons have physical and transportation limitations and may be ideal candidates for telework. In addition to employers looking at telecommuting for cost savings and employee health and wellness, a telecommuting program expands recruitment and retention opportunities for employers.

Selecting the right people and appropriate tasks should be encompassed in the development of a telework policy that adapts goal-oriented planning for better fulfillment of telework’s potential and to meet certain strategic purposes. A program will produce more visible consequences when it is introduced to address front-end issues such as the reduction of overhead costs, increased productivity, enhancement of employee satisfaction and morale, and improvement to organizational resilience and flexibility.

Changes in worker motivation, habits and job attitude, work-family conflicts, social isolation, career development, appropriate jobs, and a supervisor’s perception of the additional work to monitor employees are some of the barriers that may impede the success of a program. Other considerations include relegation of tasks to other employees on-site, legislation, ergonomics and protection of proprietary and personal information.

With only three per cent of workers currently considering their home as their primary workplace (not including self-employment), Canadian employers must choose to adopt tools and technologies that make flexible work possible and determine beyond the cost savings if the pros outweigh the cons to introduce a telecommuting program. Telework can have a positive effect of enhancing individual productivity by contributing with reduced commuter stress and higher work motivation.

Natalie Lisik is speaking at BC HRMA’s 50^th Annual Conference & Tradeshow in Vancouver. Her session Working at Home – The Pros and Cons of Telecommuting  is on Friday, April 27^th.

Natalie Lisik is a Certified Disability Management Professional (CDMP) with a Rehabilitation Management Diploma from Simon Fraser University. She has a wide variety of experience in the private and public sector. Her passion for ability management, educational background and experience of working directly for businesses and a large union local provides her with a unique insight into the overall needs of each party – the company, union and employee.