Telecommuting Work Ethics

Telecommuting will continue to grow as a benefit to the modern day workforce. Recently there has been much discussion and research on whether telecommuting is benefiting companies or whether it is actually lowering worker’s production. Marissa Mayers, upon taking the helm of Yahoo at a time of the company’s perceived decline, banned her workers from telecommuting. This caused quite a stir in the global workplace. Would this set workers back; especially working moms? According to Gallagher (2013), “Despite moves by Yahoo! Inc., and Best Buy to end policies that allowed employees to work from home, eight in 10 employers say they will maintain some form of telecommuting” (para. 1). Although Mayers’ announcement was considered controversial, research based on current day telecommuting indicates that telecommuting is a benefit that is here to stay.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, teleworking opportunities, increased from 19% in 2003 to 24% in 2015 (Shin, 2017). For employees, the question becomes what are the advantages and disadvantages of working remotely and how do they affect culture, and the successes for the employee? While job satisfaction is the driving force for employee morale, teleworking still requires performance and productivity to be successful.

In mid-sized companies such as Q-tel, telecommuting is much more frequently used than work in office. According

Telecommuting has been shown to reduce absenteeism, improve retention, and reduce recruitment costs for the organization (Family, pg. 730). Increased employee moral is also a benefit associated with telecommuting (Professional Isolation, pg. 512). Offering this new benefit that is such a satisfier for employees will likely result in reduced turnover within the organization and higher productivity. A study found pubic employees who were satisfied with their telework/telecommuting benefits were less likely to leave their positions (Family pg. 732). With the reduction of office time, an increase in employee productivity is likely due to fewer interruptions from fellow employees (Lessons pg. 10). With telecommuting having benefits to both the employer and employee, this new policy should bring positive results to the

Employers allow telecommuting for many reasons, including the ability to recruit better talent, decrease overhead expenses, increase productivity, expand the employee base to include those with disabilities (Anderson, Bricout & West, 2001; Lipin, 2010; Myungjung & So Hee, 2017), and to support

“This remote work may be something we should be doing more of, according to two new studies. Working from home can be good for your health and productivity. Not only did people who worked from home report greater work satisfaction and less “work exhaustion,” they also got better sleep. Separately, researchers found that the highest performing workers were the most likely to cultivate and excel in a “WFH” environment (Gregoire, 2015)”. If workers don't prefer to work at home they are more than welcome to continue working at the main workplace. The company will give each employee the opportunity to try working from home in order to have more space at the main work

Awareness will be created by promoting the change on the intranet that is accessible by all employees. To provide the Desire, we will articulate what the change is and how it will impact each employee. Knowledge of the documentation necessary to work from home is provided with the company documentation as well as a link from the intranet article. The Ability to make the change is fairly easy, but there will need to be some skills developed to keep the work from home person on track with their tasks as well as demonstrate ways to keep in touch with co-workers. Reinforcement will come in the accountability for working from home as well as demonstrating that working from home provides no negative consequences to the employee’s ability to perform their job

Today’s fuel costs have put a great deal of pressure on the commuting employee and they are looking for ways to cut corners. An alternative for work commute trips is telecommuting. It is obvious that there is a tangible savings by the employee if they are able to work from their home. The employer is concerned and rightfully so that managing resources through telecommuting is more difficult than managing traditionally.

A revolution is spreading through the world of work because of changes in information, technology and communication. Information and technology has lessened the gaps between individuals and it is no longer necessary for people to be in close geographic location to enhance working capabilities. Telework means working at a distance and technology makes this possible. Teleworkers are defined as employees or contractors who work at least one day per month; they are also referred to as telecommuters. Research shows that teleworkers work nine days per month at home with three hours per week during normal business hours. Teleworkers seek to blend work responsibilities and personal benefits to enable them handle their work better and life responsibilities.

Employers can give their employees the option of working from home between 3 to 5 days a week causing them to be able to save. For example, Deloitt LLP offers most of its 45,000 employees the option of telecommuting as many as 5

According to the Globe and Mail, as of 2013, 23% of Canadian Companies offered employees the option to telecommute. A Statistics Canada study stated that in 2000, 1,425,700 respondents worked from home, where as in 2008 the number of people working from home was 1,748,600, a small but notable upward trend. Though numbers are only increasing slowly, more and more Canadians are working from home. The trend is particularly impacting university graduates, of who more than 1 in 5 work from home. Factors that have contributed to this trend include an increase in the type and availability of technology, the desire of today’s workers to have a better work-life balance, and the desire of companies to attract employees.

Harry Davis, who is the Human Resource Manager (HRM), is determined to discover what is causing the high turnover rate with the medical billing specialists at MedEx. According to the text, telecommuting is an example of an unconventional work arrangement where employees work from home or another location besides their traditional employer (Martocchio, 2013). Nevertheless, Harry conducts a survey, which reflects, that a vast majority of the employees would prefer to work from home. The possibility of telecommuting being offered at MedEx, for the medical billing specialist, has finally become a reality. However, telecommuting has its disadvantages and challenges.

The freedom to telecommute with international employees remove geographical barriers to productivity and allows for schedule flexibility. To meet needs and function efficiently in an ill-defined hierarchy, these companies can change quickly by organizing expert employees in groups and giving them the decision-making authority. When employees manage, and coordinate their own projects, it fosters a sense of pride in the ability to change and meet the demands of the situation fostering a strong work ethic.

Yet even though I work in Information Technology (IT) and utilize tools that enable one to work from outside of the office, detached from a desk, and way from subordinates and boss’s, my organization does not allow this. They use these tools as an avenue to enable individuals to work from home after work or on weekends and holidays. Reading this it may sound like the military is an unfair work place forcing members long hours, but I have no right to complain, as I volunteered and chose this life. But for the purposes of the assignment, I will look into, and examine the issue of companies using IT to extend work into employees’ home lives, and if doing so is based on ethical and moral grounds, or if it is

According to Global Workplace Analytics, 2.5% of the United States workforce work from home at least half the time and 80% to 90% of the US workforce would like to telework at least part time (Global, 2015). They believe that two to three days a week seem to be a good balance of concentrative work at home and collaborative work at their offices.