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Telework continues
to grow across Europe - and pretty much in line with earlier
predictions from the European Commission.
Back in 1994 the
modestly titled "High Level Expert Group" on the
Information Society predicted that by the year 2000 there would
be 10 million teleworkers in Europe. According to the ECaTT
project, which monitors the growth of e-work and e-commerce, in
1999 the figure had reached 9 million.
Uptake of
teleworking however varies significantly between countries. At
the high end, nearly 17% of the Finnish workforce telework. At
the other end of the scale, less than 3% of the workforce in
France or Spain do so.
Numbers of
teleworkers and % of workforce: overall European average
6%
These figures are
made up of a number of different categories of teleworker:
-
home-based
teleworkers - defined as working from home at least one full
day per week using ICT (information and communication
technologies)
-
supplementary
(or occasional) teleworkers - who work occasionally from
home and/or telework at home beyond their regular working
hours
-
centre-based
teleworkers
-
mobile
teleworkers - who work at least 10 hours per week away from
home and main place of work, using ICT to do so
-
self-employed
teleworkers in SOHOs (small office/home office)
-
people who
combine the above methods of telework
This definition is
broader than some definitions used in other surveys. But
this inclusive approach does have the advantage of being rooted
more in the reality of the world of work, rather than imposing
arbitrary cut -offs (e.g. decreeing that people teleworking less
than 2 days per week at home are not counted).
Interpreting the
trends
One key distinction
is that between "regular" and
"supplementary" teleworkers. About a third of all
teleworkers identified fall into the "supplementary"
category. This distinction is important not only for determining
the extent and limitations of current teleworking practice, but
also for analysing trends. It seems that some 3 million
Europeans are set up for teleworking, but their practice of it
is limited.
The survey concluded
that around two thirds of jobs have a significant degree of
"teleworkability". Yet the ECaTT survey of
decision-makers shows continued reluctance in companies to bite
the bullet and introduce new ways of working, despite reported
high levels of interest.
Significantly,
technological issues are less of a concern than reported in
previous surveys, although concerns over data security indicate
in part distrust of technology. The constraints are largely down
to prevailing business cultures, lack of knowledge, and inertia.
From the survey
empirica have developed an extrapolation model to project the
development of teleworking up to 2005. The findings were
reported at the e-Work2000 conference in Madrid in October, and
indicate a continued boom in teleworking, with numbers of
teleworkers in the European union rising to around 11% of the
workforce.
| Country |
1999
(ACaTT) |
2005
(estimate) |
| Denmark |
10.5 |
19.4 |
| Finland |
16.8 |
29.4 |
| France |
2.9 |
4.8 |
| Germany |
6.0 |
12.6 |
| Ireland |
4.4 |
7.7 |
| Italy |
3.6 |
7.1 |
| Netherlands |
14.5 |
25.2 |
| Spain |
2.8 |
5.4 |
| Sweden |
15.2 |
24.3 |
| UK |
7.6 |
11.7 |
| EU10 |
6.1 |
10.8 |
% of labour force
teleworking (all teleworkers)
The researchers feel
these figures may be a touch on the conservative side, as
current teleworking schemes have tended to be set up on an ad
hoc basis with limited numbers, whereas newer schemes tend to be
more comprehensive and include larger numbers of employees.
Recommendations
The report concludes
with a series of recommendations for further research or action,
with the aim promoting job creation, spreading awareness and understanding
better telework's role and impact in society.
For further information
on the project contact the project co-ordinator, Mr Werner Korte,
at:
empirica
Oxfordstrasse 2
DE-53111 Bonn
Tel: +49 (2 28) 9 85
30-0
Fax: +49 (2 28) 9 85 30-12
Email: info@empirica.com
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