PGi Survey finds Telecommuting Reduces Stress While Increasing Worker Productivity

 Even as several high-profile companies have banned telecommuting, the phenomenon continues to grow, and a survey from PGi indicates that this is a good thing. The survey, which focused on U.S. based customers and knowledge workers, found that telecommuters experienced decreased stress (82 percent of respondents), higher morale (80 percent), improved productivity (70 percent), and reduced absenteeism (69 percent). The study also found that telecommuting is especially widespread among businesses employing knowledge workers.

For example, the survey showed that 80 percent of knowledge-worker respondents reported their employers allowing telecommuting. Over 70 percent said that they participate in a telecommuting program. Half of respondents telecommute one day per week. Over 20 percent telecommute at least five days per week.

Over 90 percent of telecommuting respondents reported using a company-issued laptop while additional technologies, such as VPN access to company data (76 percent), web conferencing tools (50 percent), and cellphone/smartphones (62 percent), were also popularly provided.

“The findings confirm what we at PGi have always known to be true: Telecommuting provides important emotional benefits for employees, while at the same time delivering meaningful operational improvements for businesses,” said Sean O’Brien, EVP of strategy and communications for PGi. “Instead of insisting on 9-to-5 hours in an office, our customers are increasingly adopting virtual collaboration technologies, like iMeet and GlobalMeet, to provide rich online engagement and to empower their ‘anywhere workers’ to work smarter and be more productive. We expect that this trend will continue as companies worldwide understand the value and benefits of adopting flexible work models.”