Do your staff prefer working from home? It seems that 9 out of 10 workers would like the option to work from home. Take a look at this article https://www.verdict.co.uk/working-from-home.
The spread of home working is opening up a new range of possibilities for the way businesses can work and structure themselves.
As well as opportunities and benefits, home working brings new responsibilities for the employer and employee. Employees with 26 weeks service have a statutory right to request flexible-working arrangements such as home working and you have to seriously consider such requests.
Your staff can be just as effective working from home. Make sure they have the correct set up, access to data and communications to contact clients and colleagues.
So, do your staff prefer working from home? We compare working from home to working in the office.
Advantages of employees working from home
With increasing numbers of employees working at home – or using home as a working base for at least part of the week – it’s clear there are a number of benefits for business, such as:
- Improved employee retention – home working can help retain employees with an otherwise long daily commute.
- Access to a wider pool of applicants – for example, such as those from more geographically remote areas, or people who may prefer to work from home.
- Possible productivity gains – due to fewer interruptions, allowing more focused work.
- Increased staff motivation – with staff having a better work/life balance.
- Financial benefits – savings on office space and other facilities.
- Convenience – ability to locate sales staff near clients rather than in your premises.
- Better work/life balance – employees working from home can lead to improvements in health and well-being.
Advantages of employees working from the office
Though there are some benefits to employees working at the office:
- Monitoring performance – it is easier to manage office workers and monitor their performance.
- Cost of working from the office – costs will be lower for each employee to work at the office. No training and providing suitable equipment will be required. This includes adaptations to meet health and safety standards within the home office environment.
- Staff development – easier to maintain staff development and upgrading skills.
- Information security risk – less risk of data leakage.
- Reduced isolation – home working can be lonely.
- Increased staff morale – it is easier for a team to bond in the same location.
- Some jobs can not be done at home.
- Better work/life balance – employees working away from home can lead to improvements in health and well-being.
A shift towards home working doesn’t mean employees have to work only at home. Often splitting time between home and the workplace is the most productive solution and you may want the homeworker to attend meetings to keep them fully involved and informed.
LIS are here to assist you with the transition of home working. Our experienced IT professionals can advise on improving remote worker capabilities and keep critical systems working. We can also advise on the best way to keep ICT equipment clean and hygienic for hot desking and shared areas. Contact us for more information.
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