Why cant the government encourage working from home

RoboRat

I had an idea that I think would greatly benefit the country and lift the spirits of a lot of people. Why cant companies that allow staff work from home get tax incentives for doing so. At present, there is no incentive so companies like to keep their staff in the office, but having worked from home in my last job, I know that I was far more productive and happier worker as I get more time with my family.

There are multiple benefits:
(1) Happier staff who get to spend more quality time with their family. Happier children who get to see their parents.
(2) Less cars on the road which means that people who have to go to work (ie client facing) have a far quicker commute. Less cars on the road also means less accidents, it also means less stress - how many people turn up for work completely stressed by the commute? Less stress means less health issues and so forth.
(3) All that extra money in your pocket that was being spent on petrol/ diesel. I know I would be €60 - €70 better off a week.
(4) Less cars means less emissions and a lower carbon tax
(5) Increased productivity - its been documented widely that this is the case, see forbes: http://www.forbes.com/sites/groupthink/2014/08/27/employees-who-work-at-home-are-more-productive-than-office-dwellers/
(6) More flexibility in regards to buying a house. Most people buy in Dublin and greater Dublin because of their jobs, if they could work from home, then they could look elsewhere which would stop the escalating Dublin housing market.
(7) If more people move outside of Dublin, then there will be a boost to local economies to cater for the increased population. Some towns are like ghost towns as the population commute daily to Dublin.

I think as long as there is no benefit to companies, they wont be bothered as many like to micro manage and are not willing to consider the option as they feel it will be abused. It is not abused, in fact it is quite the opposite and employees work longer as they work from when they would begin their commute to when they would have ended it. It also cuts the costs for companies.

Fuhrer

Working from home makes you weird

AndyBoBandy

Fuhrer wrote: »

Working from home makes you weird

I work from home and I'm not wei..... oh look, Star Trek is on all day!!!!

brevity

What The Oatmeal has to say on working from home.

http://theoatmeal.com/comics/working_home

Grayson

I have the option to do it 1 day a week. I rarely ever do it. I go a bit nuts stuck at home all day.

If it is better for you and your employer why do you need a tax incentive to do it?

jimgoose

What does it have to do with the Government? As we're at it, I'd like to take this opportunity to encourage the Government to work, from home or otherwise.

RoboRat

I have the option to do it 1 day a week. I rarely ever do it. I go a bit nuts stuck at home all day.

Thats fair enough and if staff feel that way thats their choice but I think it should be a choice. I know plenty of people who are commuting from the midlands that would love to work from home, myself included.

RonanP77

I'm a fork truck driver, I'm not sure it would work in my case. I'm in the office on Mondays, I suppose I could do that from home.

RoboRat

If it is better for you and your employer why do you need a tax incentive to do it?

A lot of employers are still stuck in the mentality that they need their staff in front of them. They are stuck in their ways and won't budge even though it makes perfect sense. Some even consider it a privilege that can be used as a carrot. The bottom line is that there are a lot of jobs that can be easily done from home and employers need to embrace the digital age but they won't. By giving a tax incentive its gives them a carrot and then they can see the huge benefits.

Quin_Dub

I've been working from home full time for about 6-7 years.

Go in to the office about once a month or so. I can't imagine going back to a regular 9-5 in the office job.

Agree with all the positives mentioned in the OP

Not sure what the government could do though to promote it.

RoboRat

I'm a fork truck driver, I'm not sure it would work in my case.

As I said, its not possible for all jobs but wouldn't your life be so much easier if there was half the number of cars on the road when you commute to work?

YFlyer

RonanP77 wrote: »

I'm a fork truck driver, I'm not sure it would work in my case. I'm in the office on Mondays, I suppose I could do that from home.

Remote operator.

TheBeardedLady

RonanP77 wrote: »

I'm a fork truck driver, I'm not sure it would work in my case. I'm in the office on Mondays, I suppose I could do that from home.

I'm imaging a fork lift driver working from home. Hahaha.

DamagedTrax

i work 80% from a home work space, 20% elsewhere.

its great cause we have a dog, its crap cause the dog is far too amusing to get any work done a lot of the time

Caliden

I don't think I could do it full time. 1/2 days a week would be a nice or even the option of doing it on the fly if I wake up and I'm in one of those "ugh I wonder could I get away with calling in sick today...nah better go in...****!!" days.

El Weirdo

I'd say my customers would be a bit miffed about having to walk a mile up to my gaff every time they wanted a pint.

Not too sure my missus would fancy the queues of drinkers lining up outside our front door either.

RoboRat

Just wondering if those who are saying no have a long commute? There are plenty of people living far away from their workplace that would love the opportunity. There have also been countless jobs I have turned down due to the location.

seamus

Primary issue for me with working at home is that you basically spend your entire day double-jobbing.

No matter how much you tell your partner/children that you're working and not available, you will still ultimately be asked to keep an eye on the kids for ten minutes here and there, or, "Can you just give me a hand with this, it'll be a few minutes", or, "Any chance you'll get 20 minutes to hang that shelf?". Or you're trying to engage in a conference call and there's screaming and shouting going on and people constantly in and out making noise.
If I'm in the office, I'm physically unavailable.

If you have a completely separate home office that's not a storage room, or a spare bedroom, or otherwise constantly in use by your family, then it can work. Otherwise, for me, it's more stressful than going into the office.

It's nice now and again to be able to just stand up and say, "Grand, I'm done for the day, let's go to the playground". But not on a constant or permanent basis.

My sister does one day a months working at home its a requirement that all employees work form home one day a month, it works for her because she is very disciplined and her family is grown up, my husband tried it for a few days and realised it wouldn't work if I was there because we keep chatting and having cups of tea plus he like a work is work and home is home split.

I do know someone who does planning and forecasting and they work almost all the time at home and only go in to work one day a week or even less that that sometimes, I couldn't do that its too isolating home working is getting more common though.

jester77

seamus wrote: »

Primary issue for me with working at home is that you basically spend your entire day double-jobbing.

No matter how much you tell your partner/children that you're working and not available, you will still ultimately be asked to keep an eye on the kids for ten minutes here and there, or, "Can you just give me a hand with this, it'll be a few minutes", or, "Any chance you'll get 20 minutes to hang that shelf?". Or you're trying to engage in a conference call and there's screaming and shouting going on and people constantly in and out making noise.
If I'm in the office, I'm physically unavailable.

If you have a completely separate home office that's not a storage room, or a spare bedroom, or otherwise constantly in use by your family, then it can work. Otherwise, for me, it's more stressful than going into the office.

It's nice now and again to be able to just stand up and say, "Grand, I'm done for the day, let's go to the playground". But not on a constant or permanent basis.

Even with a dedicated office there are still plenty of distractions and noise.


Plus it can be very lonely. It's great having colleagues around to talk about stuff, grab a coffee, head out for lunch or after work beers.

KungPao

If large swathes of office workers suddenly decided to set up home offices, all those coffee shops dotted around Dublin would start to struggle. O' Brien's sales of over-priced sambos would go into a tail spin, and LUAS tickets sales would be hit. Not to mention all the lost taxes from fuel and VAT etc.

I think it would be a killer for the economy.

Xios

Society doesn't benefit from you working at home. Working at home makes you more fiscal (as in, watching your money).

People who work from home do not need to Commute, so therefore they don't need a car/transport. They do not need to spend money on fuel or travel costs.

People working from home will likely have better diet and spend less money on food, because their schedule is predictable, they can cook at home. They will not spend their money in the local deli, or go out for lunches.

People working from home will have much more spare time. They won't need to cram their social lives into a few hours in the evening. The will be able to better plan their lives and manage their finances. Pressures on time force workers to look for quick sources of entertainment, cinema, pub, playstations etc.

People working from home will likely have time to worry about politics and be more educated as a result.

I think the modern construct of a 9 to 5 economy is designed to keep the lower classes pinned down, just barely getting by, just having enough time to be a little bit happy and not be able to pursue their interests as a result. This is not as appearant in Irish society as we are generally a well off economy, but in the U.S.A. it is rampant, the poorer classes in society are forced to work degrading, menial and dead end part-time jobs with little or no benefits (such as walmart).

The above does not apply to people on the dole, that's another case. the dole is depressing, demotivating and cripples individuals ambition.

Quin_Dub

seamus wrote: »

Primary issue for me with working at home is that you basically spend your entire day double-jobbing.

No matter how much you tell your partner/children that you're working and not available, you will still ultimately be asked to keep an eye on the kids for ten minutes here and there, or, "Can you just give me a hand with this, it'll be a few minutes", or, "Any chance you'll get 20 minutes to hang that shelf?". Or you're trying to engage in a conference call and there's screaming and shouting going on and people constantly in and out making noise.
If I'm in the office, I'm physically unavailable.

If you have a completely separate home office that's not a storage room, or a spare bedroom, or otherwise constantly in use by your family, then it can work. Otherwise, for me, it's more stressful than going into the office.

It's nice now and again to be able to just stand up and say, "Grand, I'm done for the day, let's go to the playground". But not on a constant or permanent basis.

Separate Office is a must...My kids are older ,so there's no one home for most of the day , but even when they are , over the years they've been trained that if the door to the office is closed then I'm not available.. If it's open, they're free to come to ask for something or whatever..

I have them so conditioned now that if they really need to ask something but the door is closed they will write a note and push it under the door , some of the notes over the years have been hilarious...

jester77 wrote: »

Even with a dedicated office there are still plenty of distractions and noise.

Plus it can be very lonely. It's great having colleagues around to talk about stuff, grab a coffee, head out for lunch or after work beers.

Nah , it's a perfect fit for my misanthropic nature!! :-)

cletus van damme

I used to work from home on occassion.
I did fcuk all - it was effectively a duvet day that I got paid for.

RoboRat

Primary issue for me with working at home is that you basically spend your entire day double-jobbing.

No matter how much you tell your partner/children that you're working and not available, you will still ultimately be asked to keep an eye on the kids for ten minutes here and there, or, "Can you just give me a hand with this, it'll be a few minutes", or, "Any chance you'll get 20 minutes to hang that shelf?". Or you're trying to engage in a conference call and there's screaming and shouting going on and people constantly in and out making noise.
If I'm in the office, I'm physically unavailable.

If you have a completely separate home office that's not a storage room, or a spare bedroom, or otherwise constantly in use by your family, then it can work. Otherwise, for me, it's more stressful than going into the office.

It's nice now and again to be able to just stand up and say, "Grand, I'm done for the day, let's go to the playground". But not on a constant or permanent basis.

I disagree, its about discipline and if you don't have discipline then it doesn't matter if you are in an office or at home, you are going to doss. Plus it becomes evident fairly quickly if you are on the doss as it will be reflected by your work output but a company should not assume you will doss, if that is the case then why hire you in the first place?

I have worked from home in my last job worked and I would do easily do twice the amount of work because I would start when I would normally leave (extra hour) and finish when I would normally get home (another extra hour). I wouldn't have any distractions and could get into a flow rather than start stopping which always happened at work.

I know this is not for everybody but I think the option should be offered and encouraged. The 9-5 working day of old is gone, we live in a completely different society and the workplace practices should reflect this.

Son Of A Vidic

RoboRat wrote: »

Why cant the government encourage working from home

Because of beer, the fridge and Boards.ie

Quin_Dub

Xios wrote: »

Society doesn't benefit from you working at home. Working at home makes you more fiscal (as in, watching your money).

People who work from home do not need to Commute, so therefore they don't need a car/transport. They do not need to spend money on fuel or travel costs.

People working from home will likely have better diet and spend less money on food, because their schedule is predictable, they can cook at home. They will not spend their money in the local deli, or go out for lunches.

People working from home will have much more spare time. They won't need to cram their social lives into a few hours in the evening. The will be able to better plan their lives and manage their finances. Pressures on time force workers to look for quick sources of entertainment, cinema, pub, playstations etc.

People working from home will likely have time to worry about politics and be more educated as a result.

I think the modern construct of a 9 to 5 economy is designed to keep the lower classes pinned down, just barely getting by, just having enough time to be a little bit happy and not be able to pursue their interests as a result. This is not as appearant in Irish society as we are generally a well off economy, but in the U.S.A. it is rampant, the poorer classes in society are forced to work degrading, menial and dead end part-time jobs with little or no benefits (such as walmart).

The above does not apply to people on the dole, that's another case. the dole is depressing, demotivating and cripples individuals ambition.

I was totally with you until the last paragraph....

Xios

Quin_Dub wrote: »

I was totally with you until the last paragraph....

You gotta take all of my insane ramblings or none at all.

mojesius

We can work from home, but only in certain circumstances.

Personally, i much prefer it. i tend to get double the work done as I have less distractions. Plus I can work in my pyjamas and don't have to bother with make up.

seamus

seamus wrote: »

Primary issue for me with working at home is that you basically spend your entire day double-jobbing.

No matter how much you tell your partner/children that you're working and not available, you will still ultimately be asked to keep an eye on the kids for ten minutes here and there, or, "Can you just give me a hand with this, it'll be a few minutes", or, "Any chance you'll get 20 minutes to hang that shelf?". Or you're trying to engage in a conference call and there's screaming and shouting going on and people constantly in and out making noise.
If I'm in the office, I'm physically unavailable.

If you have a completely separate home office that's not a storage room, or a spare bedroom, or otherwise constantly in use by your family, then it can work. Otherwise, for me, it's more stressful than going into the office.

There are an awful lot of people who will be alone at home during the day though so a lot of the distractions you speak about are not really applicable. Its just as easy get distracted at work too, internet, chatting to people and drinking tea, disappearing into town to grab something etc etc.

I haven't done much working from home, and some of the time it has been as a "free" day off essentially but also very good if I am running a lot of automated things as there were days where I could log in start something, relax while it was running and then analyse and start something else after etc. With proper facilities and by that I mean mostly a really good chair and a room with plenty of space (even if its a bedroom also etc) I would like to be able to work from home a few days a week, but probably not everyday.

Permabear

This post has been deleted.

SoSheSaid

I work from home and I set myself specific working hours each week and try to stick to them unless something unexpected comes up. I find that you just have to be really disciplined with your time otherwise you can actually spend more time 'working' but getting less stuff done! It can be really hard to 'switch off', but for me it's so much better than dealing with the bullsh1t you get in an office environment. I set aside my time, get my work done, and then do my own thing.

smash

Working from home means people don't spend money on public transport, petrol, road tolls, shops at lunch, the odd coffee etc etc. Why would the government encourage that? it just reduces their tax intake.

Wabbit Ears

yep, If loads of people did this there would be a huge loss in Revenue intake as well as the knock on on ancillary services like sandwich delis staff canteens etc with a shift to bulk bought supermarket purchases.

RoboRat

Working from home means people don't spend money on public transport, petrol, road tolls, shops at lunch, the odd coffee etc etc. Why would the government encourage that? it just reduces their tax intake.

And what will people do with the money they save? They will spend it elsewhere so it's not really money lost, they will still take their tuppence worth. Plus the money they make from fuel is somewhat lost on the emissions fines that we are having to pay so I would think its a bit of a leveller, not to mention the environmental benefits.

Capt'n Midnight

When FF were in power they were all about kickbacks to the construction industry.

A fraction of the money the NRA spent on motorways with unused third lanes could have bought Eircom and put in a FTTH network ages ago.

But too much money to make on VRT and excise duty on fuel.

It's no accident we are the most car dependent country in EU

Amirani

My job deals with quite sensitive data, so I wouldn't be allowed work from home to any great extent.