Teleworking and Enterprise Programs
by Daniel JACQUET
I. Teleworking
I.1 - Definition and Professions Concerned
Etymologically speaking, teleworking is work done from a distance (from the ancient Greek word " teleos " meaning far, or distant).
The definitions of Telework are many :
Some define Telework as a method of performing work at a distance, either full time or part time, in this day and age using electronic means of communication, information technologies and telematics.
Teleworking is therefore above all a means of organising work performed remotely from the location of its anticipated result, done using information and communication technologies.
In the past, a number of professions were already engaged in teleworking, in fields such as laundrywork, embroidery, services of writing reports, product conditioning, etc. The services to be performed and the collection of the finished work were done via the mail, or by organising collections from the home by car or van, etc.
A teleworker is not therefore merely someone who works solely from home.
There are four forms of Teleworking : nomadic or mobile teleworking, teleworking from home, teleworking in a tele-centre, and alternating telework.
a) Nomadic or mobile teleworking :
In this definition the Teleworker does not regularly exercise his activity in one particular place. For instance, he or she may be a consultant, a sales representative, etc.
b) Teleworking from home
This form of work is done from home, which presumes having an area totally given over to the activity.
c) Teleworking in a telecentre :
For instance, we can mention teleworking in call centres, an office devoted to and specifically arranged for teleworking. Some " neighbourhood " offices are developing in large cities which are in fact annexes to the main office that enable the employees to Telework near to their own homes and thus avoid having to travel back and forth between the suburbs and the city centre.
d) Alternating telework
This consists of dividing the work between a fixed office and home. A lot of information-processing professions are more or less directly concerned by Teleworking.
A distinction is made between :
- so-called functional teleservices, i.e. tele-secretariat, tele-reception, tele-translation, tele-entry...
- tele-computer services, concerning everything to do with technical assistance, or similar jobs
- tele-maintenance : remote programming is a function that can be fully realised from a distance,
- tele-administration which consists of the remote administration of systems (water, electricity, etc.) or remote monitoring (tele-monitoring of a transmission network, etc.),
- distance teaching, particularly professional tele-information and remote university lecturing (a good example of this is the cyber-law degree from Albi which is taught by lecturers from the faculty of Toulouse using I.T. resources). Other examples of distance teaching also exist in France, naturally,
- information and mediation tele-services, which include all I.T. catalogues, telephone reservation services, brokering, etc.
And these are only some examples. Many professions can be carried out from a distance, whether in the area of word, sound or image processing.
Thus, tele-training, the administration of electronic documents, sales contacts via the phone on behalf of very small, small or medium sized companies in rural areas, are all activities that can be performed and show excellent growth potential. This testifies to the evolution of Tele-work which is gradually becoming more and more commonplace and no longer limited to call centres.
back to Contents
I.2 - CURRENT SITUATION IN FRANCE AND EUROPE
From 1995 to 2000, tele-working jobs increased by 17% per annum across Europe. The number of teleworkers in Europe was estimated at 9 million in 1999.
Statistics for Telework in Europe
A survey commissioned by the European Union (the Eurobarometer) enables tracing the results for telework across Europe. This survey evaluated the number of Teleworkers at 10 million in Europe, in 2000. However, beyond the marked geographical contrasts between the European Union countries, the different types of work proves to be fairly different from what one might have imagined.
a) Percentage Teleworkers in the individual member States in 2000
There are more employees practising Telework in the Northern European countries. The extent of the development of Telework strongly correlates to the penetration of Internet connections in the country.
Denmark |
17.4 |
15.3 |
| Finland |
12.4 |
10.7 |
| United Kingdom |
10.4 |
9.6 |
| Sweden |
10.1 |
9.1 |
| Netherlands |
9.6 |
9.1 |
| France |
5.6 |
5.3 |
| Luxembourg |
5.1 |
4.9 |
| Belgium |
4.6 |
3.9 |
| Austria |
4.0 |
3.7 |
| Germany |
3.4 |
3.7 |
| Spain |
3.6 |
3.2 |
| Greece |
3.3 |
3.1 |
| Ireland |
3.3 |
2.7 |
| Italy |
3.1 |
2.8 |
| Portugal |
2.4 |
2.3 |
| Average across the European Union |
5.6 |
5.1 |
b) Percentage male and female Teleworkers per member State of the European Union in 2000
More men practise Teleworking than women (taking all employees and self-employed overall)
Denmark |
20.9 |
12.8 |
| Finland |
13.5 |
11 |
| Netherlands |
12.1 |
5.6 |
| Sweden |
11.4 |
8.5 |
| United Kingdom |
10.6 |
10.2 |
| France |
7 |
3.8 |
| Luxembourg |
5.3 |
4.8 |
| Belgium |
6 |
4.1 |
| Austria |
4.0 |
3.9 |
| Germany |
4.4 |
2.8 |
| Spain |
4.7 |
1.5 |
| Greece |
4.6 |
1.3 |
| Ireland |
2.8 |
4.3 |
| Italy |
2.6 |
4.2 |
| Portugal |
1.8 |
3.4 |
| Average across the European Union |
6.2 |
4.8 |
c) Percentage Teleworkers among upper management in 2000
Denmark |
42.2 |
| United Kingdom |
26.7 |
| Finland |
25.3 |
| Netherlands |
20.4 |
| France |
16.6 |
| Spain |
14.6 |
| Belgium |
13.6 |
| Luxembourg |
12 |
| Sweden |
11.4 |
| Germany |
9.5 |
| Greece |
9.4 |
| Ireland |
7 |
| Portugal |
6.4 |
| Italy |
6.2 |
| Austria |
5.8 |
| Average across the European Union |
15 |
Currently, the 10 million Teleworkers in the European Union consist of :
- salaried home workers, most of whom work alternatively at home and on the company premises (most spend more of their working week on company premises, in order to preserve strong corporate and professional ties with the other members).
- self-employed people working from home,
- mobile workers outside of their home or main workplace (on business trips, as representatives, etc. who during that time connect up to computer networks),
- occasional workers who could be included in the first category.
During the wrap-up to the conference on TeleWork in Europe, Claudie Haigneré, the Minister in charge of Research and New Technologies said that " the State (...) must promote the practise of Telework ".
The minister also presented four courses for work :
- the development of Internet access in the territories. The Telework rates in each of the countries are proportional to the rate of Internet dissemination,
- the adaptation of corporate law or professional valorisation criteria,
- the creation of an observatory of good Telework practices,
- the search for the impact of Telework on sustainable development.
Additionally, Claudie Haigneré " strongly invited French companies and their employees to broaden their horizons and look at the experience acquired in other countries ".
The government must examine the changes in the regulations needed to lift the brakes that currently exist. " Telework is a tool that must be exploited much more broadly ".
The idea of a corporate life that would allow periods of rest for the workers has gradually gathered momentum : thus, the monthly work duration has been halved on average, in Europe, in the space of a century, with the first week of paid holidays appearing during the last third of that period. Western countries thus seek an effective means for reconciling professional and private life while at the same time not neglecting the aspects of profitability, productivity and the other work-related aspects generally. Telework in this respect may appear to be a useful solution for the future.
In 1997, therefore, the European commission pledged to promote Telework in Europe and even envisaged doing some of its own work in that manner. The European council of Feira in 2000 made this one of its objectives for the forthcoming decade, thus making Telework a strategic element for employment in the information society. On May 23rd 2002, the social partners (UNICE-UEAPME, CEEP and CES) adopted a framework agreement on Telework to enable the introduction of this new form of work organisation on a much larger scale.
This agreement which was signed in Brussels on July 16th last year defined Telework as being a " form of work organisation and/or performance using information technologies within the context of an employment contract or relations in which a job that could also have been performed on the employer's premises is regularly performed outside of those premises".
Telework (or e-work) continues to be fairly unusual in our European countries, however the factors in different countries vary by a factor of 1 to 5, which reflects a transition period. It is practised in those countries in an experimental form. Thus, for instance, in France only 2.2% of workers use Telework compared to 7% in the Netherlands and 11.6% in Denmark. By comparison the rate in the U.S.A. is currently 12%. This form of work is above all developed in the service activities. Contrary to a popular misconception, Telework does not concern women only : approximately 80% of Teleworkers are men. It also appears that Telework is more developed among persons with a high level of training. Also we note that the adoption of Telework is proportional to the Internet penetration rate and equipment of the companies, as well as to the time the employees spend using the tool. In Europe, 2/3 of workers say they are interested in Telework. As for the French salaried employees, 60% of them expressed an interest (Source : EcaTT : Electronic Commerce and Telework Trends).
Telework is in the process of exploding in Europe, with Finland on top, Germany in the middle of the race and Spain lagging behind. Whereas scarcely a few million Teleworkers were identified in Europe in 1994, this figure is expected to reach 10 million this year. Almost 11% of the European working population will be involved in one form or another in Telework in 2005. These are the preliminary results of the new report on " Telework in Europe : Status quo and potential " to be published in September, based on the "Electronic Commerce and Telework Trends in Europe" research project.
According to Peter Johnston, department head of the General Management of the Information Society of the European Commission " Teleworkers have become a dynamic segment of the working population. The huge increase in their number makes them a significant social and economic force. The adoption of new work organisations shall be the decisive factor for the competitiveness of European business in the information society".
Other survey results have generally shown that employees were more enthusiastic about the idea of Telework than their employers, with the highest interest shown in Sweden, where 90% of employees showed an interest. Among the managers interviewed, however, the main reservations concerning the implementation of Telework revolved around data security and protection, productivity and quality of the work, as well as supervision of the Teleworkers.
Ten European countries were analysed in depth by an international consortium of consultants directed by Empirica in Bonn, with the backing of the European commission.
Some research are currently being implemented, bearing on the entire population and the management of companies of all sizes. The research will be updated at regular intervals. Peter Johnston presented the work of the EcaTT during the general assembly of the 7th European conference on Telework, Telework 2000, in London from September 13th to 15th, 2000.
back to Contents
I.3 - Advantages and Drawbacks
Telework often enables working from home, which favourably impacts private life, especially for families. The fact of working from home has another happy consequence : without the need to travel to work, there are no more traffic jams, no long train journeys...
Teleworkers cannot but benefit from the lower stress level this implies. All the more so because teleworkers have no supervisors watching over them and are not interrupted by co-workers dropping in to talk to them, therefore they can be more productive.
They also benefit from the greater flexibility, being able to organise their own daily activities. Telework also allows people a broader choice of their place of residence. Indeed, 80% of teleworkers live in the provinces. The decision to live in a big city in this case becomes a choice rather than a necessity.
This employment practice has many advantages : a fairly deep-seated change in hierarchical relations, since the balance of forces, personal influences and phenomena of group dynamics are thus considerably reduced.
One consequence of this is a significant evolution in management methods, as Telework gives rise to " telemanagement " practices, which are based on different principles than traditional management.
Achieving results in a timely manner become the predominant criterion, and no longer the fact of achieving those results by working from 8 to midday, two to six in the evening !
Consequently, Telework definitely enables greater efficiency, as the actual working hours correspond better to the optimum concentration times of the individual employees. Not to mention reducing the unnecessary periods of presence - which can prove very costly in the long run - that French companies have unhappily learned to expect of their workers !
Internet and Intranet use is becoming more widespread, processing means and the means of communicating the information are continually improved, performing and cost less and less.
In all, this means that an almost 20% gain in productivity can be directly or indirectly envisioned (no cost for premises or adjoining infrastructures ; no travel costs, no luncheon vouchers etc.).
However, one must keep in mind the drawbacks involved. Obviously, the weight of those differs depending on the business sectors.
Telework inevitably reduces the contact and discussion between colleagues, especially informal talk between co-workers. Without vigilance, this can lead to a degree of individualism or perhaps even a disconnect between the contexts and environments that can be harmful to professional performance, the main danger being to transform the employees into so many " free electrons"!
Similarly, when working at a distance one does not " feel " the atmosphere in the company, sense a number of realities that can be seen only if physically present on the spot.
However, when all is said and done, if one takes care to maintain a minimum of real contacts and direct discussions (actual, or by telephone, not by email !) it is easily possible to overcome the drawbacks mentioned earlier. The practice of teleworking, therefore, which has so many advantages for both the employees and for the companies, in its current context has a real future ahead of it.
However, the companies have to accept to lose some measure of control - a control which, even if more traditional in nature, is not really necessary - to become more effective and performing.
Teleworking does, however, have a few disadvantages. The first, chronologically, is the cost involved : buying the equipment and organising the workspace when one works from home, is expensive.
Another disadvantage is the physical isolation of teleworkers who must be able to bear the lack of human contact and must also be self-motivated. They are no longer immersed in an atmosphere of work or surrounded by colleagues. More often, they are in their own home and must manage to make the necessary break between home as the place of family life and home as the workplace. The " osmosis " that occurs between living area and workspace may for some result in working to excess. It is not unusual for some Teleworkers to work on their computers in the middle of the night, if they are unable to sleep ! Indeed, it is easier to leave one's bedroom and shuffle across to the next room than to get up, get dressed, get into the car and go to work when the offices are all closed up. This particular disadvantage of overworking is sometimes difficult to manage.
Similarly, at the opposite end of the scale, in some cases we see teleworkers preferring to use their days for leisure activities, hoping to catch up on lost work time at night, which is extremely prejudicial to quality of work and to the equilibrium of the individual.
And the final drawback to Teleworking is the reduction in career opportunities, since without a company structure, there is no promotion.
back to Contents
I.4 - Teleworking and Disablement
Like all employees, the disabled will benefit greatly from this evolution in the work organisation. Already, in recent years, the technological progress that has been made to enable any individual to possess a fast and powerful computer system, has brought the disabled out of their isolation, particularly in the sensorial domain.
Thanks to the specific tools associated with computers, the visually impaired have access to culture, can be increasingly performing and become excellent Teleworkers.
Like any other employee, they benefit from the advantages and suffer the drawbacks. As the journey from home to work is always a delicate operation, obviously Teleworking from home is the ideal solution, that enables visually impaired individuals to work in the best possible conditions.
Once having adapted the workstation, Teleworkers will be certain that no one but they will tamper with the tool of work. Time saved on travel can be invested in systematically checking the finished work.
Already, handicapped individuals hold many Teleworking jobs. Like anyone else, they too can suffer from being far from the company centre. Very recently, a number of examples however have demonstrated their work to be distinctly superior in terms of the quality of the end result.
Thus one major nationalised company equipped a home workstation for one of its employees who had become a tetraplegic following an accident. For two years that person managed to hold down their job in a very acceptable manner. Then he asked if he could come to work one or two days a week in the company.
Neither do the visually impaired escape the difficulties inherent in Teleworking.
back to Contents
II. Enterprise Programs
II.1 - Definition and Methods of Operation
An " insertion company " is an economically viable enterprise that produces goods and saleable services and whose activity is organised specifically to facilitate the re-integration of the disabled through gainful employment. Its resources derive essentially from the sale of its products.
State aids compensate the efforts made by the company to appoint people undergoing difficulties (supervisory costs, corporate mentoring, the additional costs involved as a result of the low productivity of the persons appointed).
The host company must offer every guarantee of economic viability and offer effective support to the persons they are trying to help enter or return to the workforce.
The State aid is paid annually for each full-time position held by a disabled person. The amount and terms of the payment are fixed by decree. Since January 1st 2002, the amount of that aid is 8.385 Euro. It is increased to 9.681 Euro in some cases. The aid, paid in three instalments, is not cumulative, for one and the same job, with any other employment aid funded by the State.
The company devises a corporate strategy to promote social and professional integration. It signs an agreement with the State setting forth the funding methods.
The employees in difficulty are appointed :
- either on a contract of specific duration not exceeding 24 months and at a salary equal to or higher than the guaranteed minimum wage (the " SMIC "). The amount of the minimum monthly wage since July 1st 2002 is 1,154.27 Euro based on 39 hours work per week ; 1,035.88 Euro based on 35 hours work per week).
- Or on an aided contract : qualification, adaptation, return to employment or guidance contract.
A person can be appointed to gainful employment with an " insertion " company if that person is encountering particular difficulties in terms of social and professional integration. Priority is given to :
- the long term unemployed,
- people receiving State assistance
- people with no other source of income, on welfare (RMI in France)
- or young people in great difficulty.
The disabled are also considered a priority for employment in this type of company.
back to Contents
II.2 - The Experience of PRESTA
In France there are approximately 70,000 blind and one million others with severe vision impairment, more than half of whom are over 60 years of age. Insufficient training, the precariousness of the work contracts, the gradual phasing out of the more lowly skilled jobs, limited number of jobs in the associative and administrative territorial sectors are just so many impediments to the professional integration of the vision impaired into the ordinary workplace.
In an attempt to improve this situation, the UNADEV, a member of the Federation of Blind and Visually Impaired of France, in 1995 created an autonomous economic activity in direct contact with the world of work, in the form of an " Insertion " Company.
Designed to be a sort of antechamber to the ordinary world of work, PRESTA, that's its name, fulfils several needs : apprenticeship for working life and for corporate life, enhancement of personal knowledge and the job search.
PRESTA is a pilot " insertion " company in France, employing both blind and visually impaired workers. Its aim is to propose and contribute a real solution to the many requests from the visually impaired concerned to find a meaningful place in society through gainful employment.
PRESTA is a company in its own right.
In the face of so-called closed proposals such as Centres for Aid through Work, or Supported Workshops, PRESTA has chosen to stand as a true services production company.
It is subject to all of the production constraints weighing on other companies, i.e. efficiency, meeting the agreed deadlines, quality of work, adaptation to the customers requests, a competitive price for the service rendered.
A showcase for the expertise of non-sighted persons, PRESTA can in this way demonstrate to the decision-makers that a team of visually impaired people can understand profitability and productivity stakes.
PRESTA employees have the will to integrate themselves into the ordinary work environment. With the help of personal mentors and regular assessment, they develop their capabilities, their know-how, their personal involvement in the work group.
All of these skills help ready them to respond positively to a job offer, to attain a truly positive outlook.
Since its creation, PRESTA has established with the territorial and local communities (the General Council, Regional Council, Municipalities), with institutional partners or companies, strong relations which involve it directly in the economic and social concerns of the large Aquitaine region.
What specialities does PRESTA offer ?
- filling envelopes,
- film wrapping,
- routing of miscellaneous documents,
- large scale Braille printing.
Personnel : eleven full time salaried employees, most of whom are visually impaired.
back to Contents
II.3 - GAIPAR Thinking on a Telecentre
The GAIPAR association is also a member of the Federation of Blind and Visually Impaired People of France envisioned in the year 2000 setting up a Telecentre in which there would be places for visually impaired people.
The initial plan foresaw this Telecentre in the form of a one-man enterprise. The anticipated activity concerned services using computer tools and the Internet network in the fields of :
- secretarial work done from a distance,
- drafting of reports,
- remote maintenance,
- website creation,
- updating and monitoring of Internet sites,
- administrative and budget monitoring
In view of the difficulties generally encountered by all people wishing to set up a company in France, this Telecentre is having trouble getting started.
Indeed, a structure such as this can emerge only with some relatively significant funding in the early stage. Bankers are often very reluctant to pioneer this kind of effort.
This is why GAIPAR, which still intends to set up this Telecentre, is looking more in the direction of an " insertion " company which offers a number of essential advantages in setting one up.
Beyond the " insertion " company, some additional thinking by GAIPAR has taken them along a new path : a job training, or re-training centre.
Indeed, experience shows us that a number of poor-sighted or blind people need a structure like this for them to truly get started in the world of work.
These two lines of thought, insertion companies on the one hand and a job-training centre on the other can be highly complementary. However, the financial aids differ. When the studies will be fully completed, GAIPAR would like to open a new way for the professional insertion of visually impaired people into the ordinary workplace : the Telecentre.
back to Contents
Conclusion
Teleworking, as outlined above, is undoubtedly a solution for the disabled to consider. It goes without saying that using computer tools and networks must be perfectly possible. Poor sighted and blind people who find jobs in telecentres will thus be able to benefit from opportunities to work from elsewhere, while maintaining a much better quality of life.
The insertion company and the job training centre are opportunities afforded the future employees to enable them to prove their worth before entering the conventional professional environment.
Back to "European Employment Conference" Contents