Homeworking in Japan

The Japanese bilingual newspaper The Daily Yomiuri has this article about the Government looking at teleworking/homeworking schemes. "The government likely will establish a study panel of experts within the next fiscal year to work toward the full-fledged introduction of the so-called teleworking system for public servants, according to government sources. The teleworking system allows employees to work from home by using information technology to communicate with the workplace.

"By setting up a situation in which workers can communicate with their offices by phone, fax and the Internet, the government intends to utilize the idling workforce among public servants such as those on childcare or nursing care leave. As part of its e-Japan strategy, the government plans to increase the percentage of people utilizing the teleworking system to about 20 percent of the total workforce, including the private sector, by 2010. Within the government, the Internal Affairs and Communications Ministry introduced the teleworking system in September 2006. Under the system, six ministry employees who have preschool-age children designate a certain day of the week to work at home. Their workday, however, is identical to that of employees at the office, involving an eight-hour day from 9:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., including a lunch break."

Homeworking cliches

Over-50s marketing expert Dick Stroud (who among his many accomplishments has an excellent blog ) has a marvellous article on his site where he complains that: "The media's reporting about marketing and the over 50s is bogged down in a cycle of trivial and unsubstantiated debate. Reading an article on the subject is like Bill Murray's experience in the film Groundhog Day: a ceaseless round of identical arguments, quotes, examples and unresolved questions. The mainstream and marketing media are equally as bad." I confess that I often feel the same about articles on homeworking. Today's issue of The Guardian has a piece (not yet online) in its Office Hours section called 'How to...work from hom' by Giles Morris which particularly gets my garden shed goat.

So, homeworkers stay in bed late? Check. They work in pyjamas? Check. They spend all afternoon shopping and watching television? Check. They exist in an isolated world? Check. All bosses are paranoid about homeworkers not working? Check. It's obviously supposed to be a humorous little thing and I don't want to seem like a humourless homeworking robot, but frankly what's the point in printing it? It makes The Guardian look behind the times in terms of working trends, won't encourage 'traditional' office workers to make the change, and certainly won't be welcomed by most homeworkers I know as a reflection of their lifestyles.

Strangely though it also points out that homeworking is more efficient.

Home office space ideas

US magazine Ladies' Home Journal has this interesting piece about three very different types of home offices, all with good illustrative photographs. First there's the unbeatable cedar 'potting shed' garden office, pictured, (workplace of a shoe designer with a decidedly feminine interior). Then there's one on a landing (photographer and home furnishing shop owner). And finally there's what's basically a big wardrobe for a couple whose work is not specified.

What not to wear when you're homeworking

New 'research' from BT Broadband Talk confirms many callers' suspicions: that loads of people in Britain talk on the phone when they're naked. 49 per cent of people questioned said that they were happy to talk to friends and family when unclothed at home. Apparently women are much more likely than men to do this (57 per cent vs 40 per cent). A quarter of people questioned also said that they used phone calls as a way of pretending they were elsewhere – this figure rises among males, 30 per cent of whom regularly use the advantage of not being seen to make the person they are speaking to think they are somewhere else (what a marvellouse ruse chaps). The research also says that 83 per cent of people questioned say that they carry out other activities while speaking on the phone.

Homeworking and flu in the City

In an article on silicon.com headlined Flu simulation puts spotlight on homeworking, Steve Ranger looks at how City firms have been looking at how they would continue operating if there were to be a flu pandemic. "Companies' homeworking strategies were also tested and "many issues" surfaced," he writes, "including how to ensure effective compliance and control over remote activity, IT security considerations and how to maintain tech support, the report found. It said the exercise also raised the question of whether the telecoms infrastructure would be able to support large-scale homeworking for a prolonged period when staff shortages in the telecoms sector progressively eroded maintenance capability.

"Investment banks responded to the (simulated) growing shortages of front, middle and back office staff by reducing trading volumes but throughout the scenario "virtually all" trading was conducted on-site as businesses were not sure they would be able to maintain levels of compliance and control to allow trading from home on a prolonged basis. But the report said that while financial infrastructure providers produced regular updates on their operational status to the market throughout the exercise, due to the high level of automation of their processes, it appears that only very high levels of absenteeism would threaten their critical functions."

Squirearchy and satellite broadband

There's been a lot of hoo-hah about what the folk in the City are going to be spending their bonuses on this year. This article in The Times concentrates on what they'll be snapping up in London this year, but also suggests a new trend. "The current new big thing for the recipients of bonus loot," writes Anne Ashworth, "is the mini-estate, according to Liam Bailey, head of residential research at Knight Frank. About £2.5 million will buy you a substantial farm in previously “off-pitch” places such as the Welsh borders, North Norfolk, North Yorkshire and deepest Cornwall and Devon. Not within commutable distance of the City, perhaps, but the new member of the squirearchy can work from home for one day a week with the help of satellite broadband."

EDM 231 - Regulation of Homework

Not the sexiest of headlines on this blog, but one of the most important. The National Group on Homeworking is asking MPs to sign Early Day Motion 231, which now has the sponsorship of Ann Cryer MP, in their ongoing campaign to win full employment rights for homeworkers. Currently thousands of homeworkers miss out on key rights such as maternity leave, pension rights or protection against unfair dismissal/redundancy because their employment status is unclear. Some are even denied the National Minimum Wage. So a change in the law is needed. Sharpish.

The EDM reads: "That this house believes homeworkers deserved the same employment rights and protections as those employed in factories or offices and that employment rights should therefore be extended to homeworkers, using the 1999 Employment Act which allows for the extension of employment rights to groups of workers not currently covered."

To apply more pressure, you could contact your local MP(s) and urge him/her/them to support the campaign.