Employees Willing to Cut Pay to Work from Home

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Telecommuting may be the ultimate win-win situation for employers and employees.

Employees want the freedom and fringe benefits that come with working from home, while employers could save big bucks on rented office space and possibly salaries.

According to a recent survey of current telecommuters conducted by Staples Advantage, 40 percent of employees would be willing to take a pay cut in order to be able to work at home. Of those, 74 percent would be willing to relinquish between 2 and 5 percent of their salary and 20 percent would part with 10 percent of their pay, the research found.Respondents also said they would give up their favorite TV show (54 percent), forgo an extra hour of sleep (48 percent) or swear off a favorite food (40 percent) rather than stop telecommuting.

According to the survey, 86 percent of telecommuters say they feel better and are more productive when they work from home.

Telecommuters say they are:

• Happier and healthier – When asked to draw comparisons, telecommuters say their stress levels have dropped 25 percent on average and their overall happiness increased 28 percent since working from home. Seventy-three percent even say they eat healthier when working from home.
• More loyal – Without the trek to the office – on average, a 77-mile round trip for respondents – 76 percent of telecommuters are more willing to devote extra time to work and say they are more loyal to their company since telecommuting.
• Better balanced – More than 80 percent say they now maintain a better work-life balance.

Businesses that allow their employees to work from home are also saving on more than just office rent and salaries. The telecommuters surveyed said they provide their own office furniture (87 percent), office equipment (60 percent) and office supplies (57 percent).

The trend looks like it's catching on. Forrester Research predicts that as much at 43 percent of the U.S. work force will be working from home by 2016.

This story was provided by BusinessNewsDaily, sister site to IT TechNewsDaily.