After hearing about all the advantages of working from home, I considered doing so myself. Before making this decision, I decided to research the future of working from home.
Well, what is the future of working from home? By 2025, it is estimated that the amount of those working from home will increase to more than 1/3 of the workforce. Currently, 3.9 million Americans, or 2.9% of the workforce, currently work at home at least half of the time. This is a 215% increase since 2005 when it was only 1.8 million. 11% of Americans now are “full-time” freelancers, many working at home, according to Flex Jobs.
Working from home, either for yourself or as an employee of another company, has a number of advantages, many of which will only become greater in the future. Whether it is the convenience of avoiding a commute, the ability to often set your own schedule, or just being able to wear comfortable clothes, you will likely be much happier working from home.
Although the benefits of working from home are many and varied, like everything else, it is not perfect. Not all jobs are suited to working from home, and performing work that can be done at home presents certain challenges. Also, working from home is still not accepted by some companies.
Reasons Why Working from Home Will Increase
Some of the many benefits people get from working at home include:
- Freedom from a commute – Most people spend a lot of stressful, wasted time traveling to and from work. Those who work at home are spared this very stressful and time-consuming chore. Instead of spending annoying, fruitless hours dealing with traffic and riding on public transportation (in some unfortunate situations, both), those lucky stay-at-home workers do not have that thankless task. They have the option of sleeping later or working longer and are not timed to an inflexible schedule.
- Stress – One of the major causes of illness or the exacerbation of existing problems is stress. Few things make people unhappier than being subjected to the grind of a twice-daily trip between home and the office.
- Convenience – When you have any sort of chores to get done, or just want to take a break whenever you want to, the stay at home worker has that option has arranged their schedule however it fits their lives.
- Health benefits – In addition to reduced stress, people who work at home have the option to exercise whenever they want, take breaks when necessary. They also can wear more comfortable clothes and experience whatever temperature suits them best.
- Improved productivity – By eliminated wasted hours in meetings at inconvenient times, those who work at home can often get much more done quickly. Studies have also shown home workers are less likely to miss work due to illness, as utilizing that pesky commute time to produce more. Having something to eat does not require leaving the office for lunch or even just the cafeteria. Just walking over to your refrigerator saves even more time, and you can eat whatever you want.
Improved Technology
Another reason why working from home should be even more popular in the future is improved technology. Today’s available computers are faster, more reliable and less expensive than those of even the recent past.
- Better Communications – Those who work at home are no longer hampered by their location away from the office. The constant use of e-mail, as well as the telephone help people, keep in touch. Now, with communication software like Skype, you can even see each other without physically being there, and screen sharing allows working on documents together in real time.
- Enhanced Cyber Security – Although computer hacking and frequently in the news, cybersecurity has also improved greatly in recent years. Both cutting-edge technology and improve procedures help safeguard important, confidential data.
The Growing Importance of Work That Can Be Done at Home
The increasingly important tech industry is well known as being particularly suitable for working away from the office. Today’s entire information economy depends far less on being in the office than ever before. The internet can allow you to quickly perform far more research than ever before.
In addition to the benefits to people from doing their work at home, companies often gain from having staff who work at home.
Benefits for Companies Who Employ Home Workers
Cost Savings on Capital
Companies obviously save money by using less office space when workers spend most or all of their time working at home. They also do not have to provide as much equipment when their employees are using their own resources.
Reduced labor costs
Not only does the company with staff working at home spend less on the office, but there are also often significant savings on labor costs. More and more companies utilize freelancers and a contractor workforce. There can be substantial savings in reduced benefits paid these workers.
Greater Productivity
Just as the workers themselves benefit from greater productivity, the organization itself gains from more productive employees.
Improved Recruitment and Retention
Today’s employees, especially the millennial generation which is becoming an increasingly larger part of the workforce, now value the flexibility that comes from working at home much more than their elders ever did. The choice of working from home is becoming a major perk when it comes to hiring the best talent.
Those who work from home are often more satisfied with their jobs than those who must spend their time in the office. A happy workforce is often not only more productive, but there is also a better chance they will stay with the firm.
Wider labor pool
Instead of being limited to employees who live near the office, today’s companies can use employees who may not be local if they work from their home. The talent that may be located far away may also be available to the companies that offer the option of working from home. Additionally, recruiting people who live in lower cost areas may also save a company even more money. People who live in lower cost areas may be willing to work for a smaller salary. This is particularly true if the tax rates are significantly lower.
Societal Changes That Now Encourage Working at Home
All of the above reason for working at home have been improving by increments over the years, but the significant changes in society’s attitudes towards working at home have finally allowed people to take advantage of the ability to work at home. The idea of working from home has become much more socially acceptable, and many supervisors are less likely to feel the need to manage people in person, particularly with improved communications. Also, whether management likes it or not, the world is changing to make working from home the norm rather than the exception. Even the issue of management’s control over their employees may become less significant in the future. Although it might not be preferable to the workers, in some cases companies may be able to monitor their employees through remote cameras
RELATED QUESTIONS
What Types of Work Cannot Be Done at Home?
Working from home is just not an option for many types of jobs. A factory worker obviously must be working at the plant and the construction workers must be at the job site. Cooks in restaurants must be on location, and the server in a nice restaurant must be there. People who work in entertainment locales like theaters and stadiums must be where they work.
Why Some Companies Do Not Want Employees to Work at Home?
Despite the many advantages of working at home, some companies are still reluctant to have the staff out of their sight. They feel it is too difficult to manage people who are not physically in the workplace.
Some firms believe an office culture is needed to make the employees feel like they are part of a team, and still do not trust people to get their jobs done without direct supervision.
Personal Reasons for Not Working from Home
Despite the many advantages of working from home, it is not for everybody. Some people would still rather work in the office, or may not have adequate space to work from home. A small apartment obviously is not conducive to work.