"Working from Home Incentive Scheme" – win:win:win situation
4:30am alarm goes off and reluctantly my day starts. 5:20am the Kilkenny to Dublin commute commences. 6:22am as the M9 meets the N7 first traffic build-up of the morning. 7:05am arrive at Fitzwilliam Square to start the day. I have been doing this commute for several years and have noticed that, in line with increasing employment levels, (lowest unemployment level since 2008) there is a steady increase in numbers of cars parked at all junctions accessing the N7 plus a steady increase in numbers of cars on the roads even at this ungodly hour. This got me thinking. Why are companies generally reluctant to offer opportunities to work from home when there is so much value to be gained? And what can to done to encourage companies to be more open-minded? So here is my plan which I think will offer a WIN: WIN: WIN scenario! The Government will offer companies an incentive to allow employees to work from home. Let’s call it – The “Work from Home Incentive Scheme” I am of course aware that certain jobs will not facilitate remote working as an option and there are also some downsides which must be mentioned as follows: There is a cost associated with having an employee working from home (broadband, phone costs, hardware etc) Not all employees are suited to the working from home option – this must be assessed on a case by case basis and all companies would need a “Work from home” policy guidelines. People working remotely should not take from the overall culture and [...]