Extracted from The Sunday Times, 20 January 2002 <<<< More Britons opt to work from home Robert Winnett
Britain has become the stay-at-home capital of the developed world. Almost one in four working Britons is choosing to work at home instead of commuting to the office -- and the number is growing. This compares with 20% of American employees and 15% in continental Europe, according to a study to be published this week by the market research firm, Datamonitor. Suma Chakrabarti, the senior civil servant appointed to the Department for International Development who hit the the headlines last week after demanding a contract which allowed him to spend more time with his family, is typical of a new breed who spend at least a day a week working at home. The study reveals that homeworkers tend to be better paid and more highly qualified than most of their office-bound contemporaries. They are efficient professionals who yearn to slend nmore time with their families -- and their elevated status gives them the clout to do so. Firms that offer such flexible working know the value of keeping their staff happy: they feature highly on The Sunday Times 50 Best Companies to Work For list, which is published annually. The findings of the study are being sold to retailers and consumer goods firms because the trend is beginning to affect spending patterns. Home-workers tend to snack more, shower less and not use grooming products. Some spend much of the day in pyjamas. "The number of home-workers is set to increase by more than 50% over the next five years", claimed a spokesman for Datamonitor last week. "This will mean that consumers will spend hundreds of millions of pounds less on eating out, drinks and personal care products. But peoplw working from home have far more time on their hands, which companies will want to profit from. The rise in home-working has been made possible by technology such as the Internet and e-mails. BT reports a rapid rise in in the number of new phone and computer connections. . . . Firms risk losing their best workers if they do not allow home-working. . . . >>>> __________________________________________________________ “Writers used to write because they had something to say; now they write in order to discover if they have something to say.” John D. Barrow _________________________________________________ Keith Hudson, Bath, England; e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] _________________________________________________
