One in 5 workers telecommute, global poll suggests

Patricia Reaney, Vancouver Sun 

One in 5 workers telecommute, global poll suggests

A new poll suggests that about a fifth of workers are now telecommuting.

Stock photo / Thinkstock


About one in five workers around the globe, particularly employees in the Middle East, Latin America and Asia, telecommute frequently and nearly 10 per cent work from home every day, according to a new Ipsos/Reuters poll.

Telecommuting is particularly popular in India where more than half of workers were most likely to be toiling from home, followed by 34 per cent in Indonesia, 30 per cent in Mexico and slightly less in Argentina, South Africa and Turkey.

But the job option is the least popular in Hungary, Germany, Sweden, France, Italy and Canada, where less than 10 per cent of people work from home.

"It is really a story about the emerging markets and I am not sure if that is because the West is about to pick up the trend. They are definitely still skeptical," said Keren Gottfried, research manager at Ipsos Global Public Affairs, which conducted the survey.

"But they see a lot of advantages. Europe and North America agree that telecommuting is a great way to retain women. It provides less stress because of less commuting and provides a better work-life balance."

Telecommuting refers to employees who work remotely from their office, communicating by email, phone or online chats, either daily or occasionally.

Advances in technology and communications have enabled people to work effectively and efficiently with-out being constantly at their desks in the company office.

It is a trend that has grown and one which looks like it will continue with 34 per cent of connected workers saying they would be very likely to telecommute on a full-time basis if they could.

More than half of people in Russia, South Africa and Argentina said they would work remotely often if given the opportunity, while employees in Japan, Sweden, Britain, Australia and Canada were the least enthusiastic about telecommuting.

Twenty one per cent of connected people globally said it wasn't a possibility for them because their job requires them to be in the workplace all the time.

Most people, 65 per cent, around the globe thought telecommuters were productive because the flexibility enabled them to have more control over their work life.

"It gives you the opportunity to work when you are most productive," Gottfried explained.

"You are working when you know you are best able to get the work done."

