by Ulugbek Abdurakhmanov
Academy of the General Prosecutor’s Office, Uzbekistan
ulugbek.abdurakhmanow@gmail.com
Ulugbek Abdurakhmanov conducted research on teleworking during his two-months guest research stay (secondment) at Lund University in the frame of the Central Asian Law project. During his research stay Ulugbek collected rich survey data on teleworking in Uzbekistan. Based on his analysis of this rich survey data, Ulugbek produced a series of blog posts on the concept of teleworking and its relevance and usage in the context of Uzbekistan. In his second blog post, Ulugbek talks about the origin of telework and provides the review of literature on possible advantages and disadvantages of telework.
2. CONCEPT OF TELEWORK
2.1. Origin of the Terminology
The concept of telework (or, more precisely, telecommuting) was born during the oil crisis in the early 1970s when a researcher at the University of Southern California Jack Nilles and colleagues published their calculations on the savings to the national economy that should result from reduced commuting (Nilles et al., 1976). This idea was developed in response to the Arab Oil Embargo and the recognition that fossil fuels were a finite resource (Reymers, 1996) and aimed at creating a more flexible communication system for employees, reduce the need for transportation, and ultimately decentralize the traditional workplace (Mears, 2007).
Nilles himself has added many qualifications to his “father of telework” mantle, pointing out that in his prototypes, employees still physically commuted to a work location – the buildings were merely suburban rather than metropolitan. Less remarked on is that teleworking in this form already existed, both as a theory (versions had been proposed in science fiction as early as 1909) and as a practice. Nilles’s own employer, NASA, had done something similar in the 1960s.
These innovations were prefigured by an even older thread of beliefs and practices that ran right through the twentieth century. They urged work to return to its rightful place in the home, through cultural modifications and the assistance of technology. In 1964, the science-fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke (himself an early advocate for telecommunications satellites) minted the motto “Don’t commute – communicate!” With widespread acceptance of this maxim, Clarke said, civilization could expect the “disintegration of the city” by the year 2000. Almost any executive skill, any administrative skill, even any physical skill, could be rendered independent of distance (Cooke, 2021).
Thus, during its origins, telework was seen primarily as a means to avoid commuting to work (Sullivan, 2003). However, later that decade, the use of the silicon chip resulted in a proliferation of personal computers and word-processing technology (Reymers, 1996). Gradually, this led to a recognition that in addition to providing employees with a more flexible work schedule, teleworking helped employers save on overhead office costs, increased worker productivity, and decreased employee absences (Swink, 2001).
2.3. Advantages and Disadvantages of Telework
Advantages of telework for workers
The advantages of telework include but are not limited to:
(1) increased flexibility and autonomy (Baruch, 2000; Pearlson and Saunders, 2001; Tremblay, 2002; Golden, 2009; Hornung and Glaser, 2009; Gregg, 2011; Maruyama and Tietze, 2012; Sardeshmukh et al., 2012; Tremblay and Thomsin, 2012). Teleworking employees have more freedom to structure their work activities and decide when, where and how they engage with work, enabling them, for instance, to work according to their own productivity cycles and times (Morgan, 2004; Gajendran and Harrison, 2007; Pyöriä, 2011). This flexibility can contribute to organisational agility, as workers are able to access work-related information more efficiently, regardless of time and space (Morgan, 2004; Campbell and McDonald, 2009; Overmyer, 2011).
(2) higher job satisfaction (Morgan, 2004; Gajendran and Harrison, 2007; Golden, 2009; Hornung and Glaser, 2009; Fonner and Roloff, 2010; Overmyer, 2011).
(3) improved work morale (Campbell and McDonald, 2009; Kanellopoulos, 2011; Pyöriä, 2011; Wheatley, 2012).
(4) better coordination of work and non-work commitments, thus improving work-life balance (Sullivan and Lewis, 2001; Gajendran and Harrison, 2007; Golden, 2009; Gregg, 2011; Kanellopoulos, 2011; Overmyer, 2011; Tremblay and Thomsin, 2012).
(5) Increased family time: the likelihood to remotely work from home on a telework basis empowers employees to combine work with the capacity to manage family-related issues (Johnson et al., 2007) and enables balance between work and family time, thus, making it possible to care for kids and other relatives, which is a significant resource for teleemployees and could lead to positive work results (Diab-Bahman and Al-Enzi, 2021).
(6) Possibility to work from home in case of sickness: having the option to telework in case of sickness can be regarded as a substitute to office presenteeism (Johns, 2010). It is plausible that people who wish to fulfill their work commitments under any conditions might be less stressed due to telework possibility. In this way, this factor can be considered a significant resource that can build employee satisfaction and productivity (Diab-Bahman and Al-Enzi, 2021) and allows a gradual return to the conventional workplace.
(7) more productivity because they experience less interruptions than colleagues working in a potentially noisy and disruptive office environment (Baruch, 2000; Bailey and Kurland, 2002; Sherry and Salvador, 2002; Morgan, 2004; Fonner and Roloff, 2010; Tremblay and Thomsin, 2012).
(8) Save on travel expenses: as teleworkers have reduced driving time to and from home, travel costs are additionally decreased (Tremblay and Genin, 2007). This likelihood to save money on travel costs, such as fuel, can likewise be a factor of increasing employee satisfaction (Diab-Bahman and Al-Enzi, 2021).
(9) more independence, convenience and flexibility for the workers with disabilities.
Besides, teleworking has been valued more by females than males, since it allows women to deal with, invest more energy and spend more time with their kids, which would not be conceivable without it (Hartig et al., 2007). Women have been increasingly motivated by the adaptability, flexibility and increased independence/autonomy when teleworking, as teleworking permits them to balance their work and family time (Lim and Teo, 2000). In addition, it could likewise build professional opportunities for women (Schreiber, 1999), as they would be able to work from home during sick as well as maternity leaves. Furthermore, it encourages men to become more associated with family issues, which may eliminate the current segregation roles between the genders (Diab-Bahman and Al-Enzi, 2021).
Advantages of telework for organizations
There are several advantages pointed out in the literature, such as:
(1) Higher/better productivity (Tremblay, 2002; Harpaz, 2002; Morgan, 2004; Gajendran and Harrison, 2007; Martínez Sánchez et al., 2007; Gregg, 2011; Overmyer, 2011; Maruyama and Tietze, 2012). For instance, teleworkers might put some of the time saved from their daily commute to the company office into additional productive work (Johnson et al., 2007; Kanellopoulos, 2011; Pyöriä, 2011; Tremblay and Thomsin, 2012).
(2) Cost saving: according to Radcliffe (2010), companies could cut back on costs while teleworking. Some examples of such savings include infrastructure, office renovation, operational costs, office rent, water, electricity, telecommunication and Internet bills, cleaning and security staff, parking, etc. (Golden, 2006, Sardeshmukh et al., 2012; Duxbury and Halinski, 2014).
(3) Recruitment of wider staff by reducing overheads and labour costs.
(4) Non-stop functioning by recruiting employees throughout the world.
(5) Increased employees’ motivation and productivity, job engagement, and job performance (Collins and Moschler 2009; Delanoeije and Verbruggen 2020).
(6) Improved staff retention.
(7) Reduced absenteeism.
(8) Improved gender diversity (e.g. women and careers), healthier workforces with less absenteeism and turnover, higher talent retention (Mello 2007; Robertson et. al., 2003).
(9) Reduced informal communication (Khalifa and Davison, 2000), etc.
Advantages of telework for the society
According to Loh and Fishbane (2020), the benefits of teleworking is not only to the employers and their employees.
Beneficiaries of teleworking for society as a whole include reductions in the agglomeration and traffic congestion, air pollution, population centrality and energy consumption (Sampath et al., 1996; Safirova, 2002; White et al., 2007; Rhee, 2008). This point is important as a 2011 traffic report shows that commuters in Baltimore, USA, spend between 50 to 70 hours yearly stuck in rush hour traffic (Plyles, 2011). Despite the above benefits, Loh and Fishbane, (2020), observe that telework will not eliminate the potential of face-to-face work and social ties/interaction.
Teleworking has also great economic and environmental benefits. According to a 2011 Statistics by Telework Research Network, (TRN), teleworking has the potential of saving the United States about 750 million dollars daily. This research body maintained that if the 41 million Americans having telework compatible jobs work from home at least a day in a week, the United States financial savings would total 772 million USD including: 494 million USD in commuter costs; 93 million USD from 775 fewer traffic-related accidents. Furthermore, TRN observes that the environment will be made healthier by the 423, 000 tons of greenhouse gas spared amounting to an equivalent of taking 77, 000 vehicles off the road in a year (TRN, 2011).
Some studies regarding the development of telework in the US (US Congress, 2014; Jones, 2015; PGi, 2015), showed that the percentage of people who telecommute has increased every year. In the study The State of Telework in the U.S. (Lister and Harnish, 2011) highlights the following issues:
· 45% of the US workforce holds a job that is compatible with teleworking (partial or total).
· If all who have jobs compatible with teleworking system would work at home 2.4 days per week, then you could save 900 billion dollars annually and would reduce oil imports from the Persian Gulf by 45%.
· The number of workers in teleworking system increased by 61% between 2005 and 2009. In the same period, employment in the domestic system increased by 1.7%.
Teleworking also contributes to improving employment in rural areas which in return may bring to the development of the essential infrastructure.
There are no findings of the impact of teleworking in development of the inner tourism. After the appearance of the Covid-19 and consequently the closure of borders and imposed restrictions many countries suffered from a dramatic decrease in travel and tourism industry, which also led to the employment loss which in turn affected the economy of countries, especially those which mostly rely on this sphere. So, in our view, allowing employees to telework can have a positive impact on the development of internal tourism and thus maintain the economy of the country.
Disadvantages of telework
However, important disadvantages associated with telework are also reported in the literature.
It is argued that telework may hinder teamwork and collaboration as team members, not physically co-located, have reduced ability to build shared understanding and implicit knowledge (Baruch, 2000; Pearlson and Saunders, 2001; Brodt and Verburg, 2007; Pyöriä, 2011; Sarker et al., 2012). For instance, telework can obstruct trust-building among team members (Pyöriä, 2011), reduce the quality and frequency of information exchange among team members (Fonner and Roloff, 2010), and hinder the building of team spirit due to adverse reactions by non-teleworking co-workers (Overmyer, 2011; Tremblay and Thomsin, 2012).
Furthermore, as teleworkers have reduced opportunities for social and informal interactions with colleagues, telework may contribute to feelings of social isolation and a lack of workplace involvement (Tremblay, 2002; Mann and Holdsworth, 2003; Gajendran and Harrison, 2007; Golden, 2009; Gregg, 2011; Maruyama and Tietze, 2012; Sardeshmukh et al., 2012; Tremblay and Thomsin, 2012). Telework may thus contribute towards decreased work satisfaction and to a feeling of social isolation (Mann and Holdsworth, 2003; Pyöriä, 2011), potentially contributing towards reduced identification with their organisations and reduced organisational commitment (Allen et al., 2003; Golden, 2009).
Some authors also argued that teleworkers might be subject to more interruptions, such as potential distractions from family members or co-workers via email, calls and chat (Baruch, 2000; Sherry and Salvador, 2002; Leonardi et al., 2010; Kazekami, 2020).
Several authors reported that telework may contribute to overwork and an increase in work-life conflict, as the boundary between work and private life becomes blurred (Tietze and Musson, 2002; Mann and Holdsworth, 2003; Gregg, 2011; Overmyer, 2011; Fonner and Stache, 2012; Sarker et al., 2012; Tremblay and Thomsin, 2012; Gold and Mustafa, 2013; Grant et al. 2019). In this sense, telework’s promise of flexibility to work anywhere and anytime may actually reduce workers’ autonomy to decide when and where to engage with work (Mazmanian et al., 2013), thus contributing to workaholism where teleworkers work everywhere (Sarker et al., 2012). In a similar vein, the management of boundaries between work and family of remote workers studied by Eddleston and Mulki (2017) revealed that telework relates to the inability of remote workers to disengage from work. Virtual workers’ heavy reliance on information and communication technologies (ICTs) creates additional job demands. They must devote time to staying current on these constantly changing and increasingly complex technologies (Ragu-Nathan et al., 2008). Some virtual workers may have limited access to training and technical support, making it difficult to stay up-to-date and master the technologies. In some locations, workers may be hampered by inadequate infrastructure (e.g., lack of fast Internet) (Graves and Karabayeva, 2020). Moreover, even if virtual workers have a technical understanding of ICTs, they may not know how to use them effectively in virtual settings (Wang and Haggerty, 2011).
Some teleworkers were also concerned about their career promotions, thinking that face-to-face interaction with the manager/employer is a key point in career opportunities.
In some cases, feeling a fear that employee representations/trade unions might not cover teleworkers and not protect them has also been listed as a drawback of teleworking.
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