Is ‘working from home’ a skive?

I’ve stolen the title for this blog straight from an article asking the same question as the current cold weather keeps commuters indoors. It’s a long running issue that speaks volumes about leadership, management, motivation, the nature of work and the whole viability of the ‘teleworking’ concept.

As the article suggests, staying in the warmth and trying to do your job without leaving the house for a hard icy slog to the office is often as necessary as it is tempting, especially as the closure of thousands of schools also means parents who could get to work are instead forced to stay away to look after their children. None of this is good news for firms. Or is it?

Yes, daytime TV viewing figures rise, and for some workers the whole idea of working from home is impractical. But for others, a laptop and mobile phone keep you in touch with those who are in the office. A YouGov survey suggested that about three quarters of employees were affected by the adverse weather conditions at the start of this year - which it said was equivalent to 124 million working hours. It also said that while almost half (48%) of British workers felt under pressure to get into work, 11% worked from home, with another 12% unable to work at all. Meanwhile, a separate report from onepoll.com in 2009 suggested that 12% of people admitted using the snow as an excuse not to go in to work.

But the ‘working from home’ idea is probably here to stay – see How IT is changing the jobs market.

Advocates argue that although many still see those working away from the office as taking it easy, the reality is different. A similar argument says that people work harder and are more productive and effective in the absence of workplace “distractions”. Furthermore, small and medium sized firms could make big savings if they invested in making their workforce more flexible.

The ‘best’ solutions will be somewhere in between, of course. Most people would be far better off working from home, on occasions, but as full time home workers they would miss out on the atmosphere, interaction and the opportunities to talk through ideas face-to-face in the workplace.