Telecommuting continues its upward march in the US. New figures from WorldatWork’s Telework Trendlines reports that overall, 29 million Americans now work remotely at least one day per month, while the number of employees doing so has risen by 63 per cent since 2004 to 12.4 million.
The latest figures mean that eight percent of the estimated 149.3 million US labour force telecommute one day per month with management’s blessing, while around 20 percent of the entire workforce engages in telework.
The numbers demonstrate the continued emphasis on work-life balance and other factors such as technology, according to the report. It said the number of telecommuters using a broadband connection at home increased by more than 45 percent in the 2006 survey, following an even larger 65 percent rise the previous year. In 2006, 19.1 million home-based “employed telecommuters” used broadband compared to 8 million in 2004, it said.
The report also found that the number of individuals who say they never work remotely fell by one-quarter, while the number of fulltime teleworkers rose by 20 percent to some 14.7 million.