Over 40 per cent of UK jobs are compatible with working from home, it claims,
but recent research by the Carbon Trust has found that only 35 per cent
of companies have a policy allowing their employees to work from home.
And where homeworking is offered by companies, between on third and a half choose not to accept it.
Homeworking reduces employee commuting, resulting in carbon, money
and time savings. If office space is properly rationalised to reflect
this, homeworking can also significantly reduce office energy
consumption and rental costs.
However, the research has revealed a critical finding: carbon savings
are sometimes not achieved because of potential rebound effects,
particularly the increased carbon emissions from employees now working
in homes that are often energy inefficient. Business must therefore take
care to factor in their individual circumstances when considering
homeworking policies, to ensure that these will actually cut carbon
emissions and not increase them.
Hugh Jones, Managing Director of Advisory at the Carbon Trust, said: “Homeworking is on the rise, with numbers increasing by over half a
million since 2007. This new research shows that in the right
circumstances, it has the potential to be expanded significantly and be a
win-win for business and the environment.
“Significant financial and carbon savings can be achieved from the
roll out of homeworking. But companies must be careful to ensure that
they get the balance right, for if employers do not take account of
their individual circumstances, a rebound effect, from employees heating
inefficient homes, may actually lead to an increase in carbon
emissions.”
Ian Foddering, Chief Technology Officer & Technical Director at Cisco UK & Ireland, said:
“By 2018, there will be over 10 billion mobile-connected devices
globally, as such, telecommuting will not only become commonplace but is
already in the progress of fast becoming the most natural way for
people to work and collaborate globally. Cisco has aggressive targets to
reduce greenhouse gas emissions from our operations and suppliers
worldwide, and telecommuting is helping us to achieve these goals.
“The average Cisco employee telecommutes two days a week, and those
using our Cisco Virtual Office technology typically work from home three
days each week. In total, this amounts to avoiding 35 million miles of
commuting per year. Not only is this great for the environment, reducing
Cisco’s CO2 emissions by 17,000 tonnes annually, but it’s also great
for business, with an estimated $333 million per year made in
productivity savings."
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