The phenomenon known as telecommuting began in the 1980s, largely fueled by the development of new technologies that made this unique method of work possible. What was once the stuff of science fiction films is now a reality. The number of people who use telecommuting to work is estimated at 10 million and is expected to increase to 13.5 million by 2003 (Apicella and Jefferson 1). There are many driving forces behind the increasing popularity of telecommuting both with employers and employees aside from new technologies like cell phones with video and email capabilities, the Internet and Intranet, laptops, and other telecommunications devices. One of the biggest drivers fueling the increasing number of telecommuters is economic. Annually hundreds of millions of dollars is spent moving employees back and forth from a workplace that is not essential for them as a place to be in terms of doing their jobs. Between urban over-congestion and environmental damage due to this process, the costs are probably much higher than estimated.
There are also a host of drivers with respect to both the employer and employee perspective. For employees telecommuting is enormously attractive from a variety of perspectives such as spending more time with their family or being able to work the hours of the day that are most efficient or productive for their goals. For employers there are also advantages, from being able to hire the best people regardless of their location to enjoying the benefits of a more motivated and happier workforce. Despite these driving forces, real growth in the telecommuting world still faces some major barriers before it is anything close to commonplace in the American workforce. This analysis will discuss the advantages and disadvantages of telecommuting for employees and employers. It will also provide examples of which type of employees and jobs are best suited to take advantage of telecommuting. There will also be...