Around 30 million Americans work from home at least one day per week. Several months ago, however, Yahoo announced it would no longer allow its employees to telecommute.
Wilford H. Stone
Its CEO, Marissa Mayer, defended her decision by first acknowledging that “people are more productive when they’re alone,” but then stressed employees are “more collaborative and innovative when they’re together.”
She claimed that “some of the best ideas come from pulling two different ideas together.” The shift in policy affects roughly 200 of Yahoo’s 12,000 employees.
As an example of that collaboration, Mayer touted the newly launched Yahoo Weather application for iOS. The application creatively uses the built-in geolocation technology in Flickr photo albums to provide users with a more accurate image of local weather.
Mayer explained that this idea originated from two software engineers who work in the same office.
It may be considered “old school” but, like Mayer, many employers still believe employee interaction and face time is productive as employees teach and learn from one another.
Of course, conversations can be held online. In an information economy where many employees produce electronic written content rather than a physical product, they want to work somewhere where they are comfortable — usually at home). Accordingly, telecommuting is one of many flexible work arrangements to permit employees to balance work responsibilities and family life — along with flexible schedules, part-time work, job sharing, and alternative work days and work weeks.
Telecommuting policies will vary from company to company and depend on your office culture. There are several factors an employer should consider when allowing its employees to telecommute, including whether:
- Collaborative efforts can be achieved using technology
- Your employees can work without supervision
- The non-telecommuters will become jealous of their colleagues at home
- Non-telecommuters will “forget” to connect with the telecommuters because they are “out of sight, out of mind”
- Managers will view telecommuters as uncommitted.
There also are several legal issues associated with employees that telecommute.
1. Productivity and performance — Because you are not able to monitor attendance and work habits, employees who have performance problems or who require close supervision are not good candidates for telecommuting. Employees that cannot create a home-work space that is safe, secure and free from distractions should not be considered.
2. Limit favoritism and use clear criteria — Be careful of favoritism or discrimination. Use objective criteria to determine which employees will be permitted to work from home and apply that criteria consistently.
Also, remember that telecommuting could serve as a reasonable accommodation to an employee with qualifying disabilities.
3. Company property — If your telecommuting employees are using company-issued computers, smartphones or tablets, have them sign documents acknowledging their receipt of the equipment and request that they take appropriate action to prevent damage or theft of the equipment.
It also is advisable to get the employee to authorize deductions from wages for any replacement costs or damages in accordance with Iowa law. Employers should also obtain consent to access the employee’s home workspace including the computer.
There also should exist clear acceptable-use policies for employees using technology at home. It is easy to blur the lines of what is work related and personal use when an employee isn’t in the office.
4. Security — If your telecommuting employee is taking home sensitive or proprietary documents or electronic data, and working from a wireless Internet connection, security issues may arise. Have an employee from your information technology department go to the telecommuter’s home to ensure that they are accessing company data appropriately and securely, either from a secure connection or through a virtual private network.
Also, remind the telecommuting employee to regularly change passwords for electronic security. Proprietary and confidential company information should be stored securely, safely and away from children, family pets, spouses and roommates.
In the next “Law” column, we will discuss other legal considerations and also how to best manage employees who telecommute through written workplace policies and written agreements with employees who telecommute.
