eWORK 2000 - European Telework Week

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New Ways to Work 2000European Telework4.3 Defining TeleworkWithout wanting to delve into the depth of academic discourse about the definition of telework (for that, seeQvortrup, 1998, Korte and Wynne, 1996, Huws et al. 1990), we present here the working definitions formeasuring telework as used by the ECaTT consortium. We fully agree with Qvortrup (1998, p. 21) thatcounting teleworkers is "like measuring a rubber band" - it is not impossible but the results depend on how faryou stretch your definition, with infinite alternative ways to chose from. Because one of our main researchpurposes is benchmarking, however, the implications of this problem are somewhat less grave: Here it is mostimportant that a definition is used which is clear-cut and unambiguous as well as easily applicable(operationable) in all countries surveyed. On the other hand, a clear-cut definition forces us to drawboundaries around a phenomenon (e.g. telework) which by their very nature tend to be arbitrary. While there isno way around this problem, we strive for transparency of definition criteria which then allow for criticalassessment by third parties. The interested reader is referred to Gareis/Korte 1999 for a detailed description ofthe definitions used in ECaTT.For the purpose of the present work, only a definition in overview form is given.4.3.1 Home-based teleworkTeleworker category IHome-based teleworkers are those who:• work from home (instead of commuting to a central workplace) for at least one full working day per week• use a personal computer in the course of their work• use telecommunications links (phone/ fax/ e-mail) to communicate with their colleagues/ supervisor duringwork at home• are either in salaried employment or self-employed in which case their main working place is on thecontractor's premisesIndividuals who are teleworking from home more than 90% of their overall working time are referred to aspermanent teleworkers, while those working from home less than 90% of their overall working time, but morethan one full day per week, are referred to as alternating teleworkers.4.3.2 Mobile teleworkTeleworker category IIIMobile teleworkers are those who :• work at least 10 hours per week away from home and from main place of work, e.g. on business trips, inthe field, travelling or on customer’s premises;• use online computer connections when doing so.4.3.3 Telework by self-employed in SOHOsTeleworker category IVSelf-employed teleworkers in SOHOs are those:• who are self-employed or effectively self-employed (e.g. persons employed by own company or employedby organisation they have considerable managing power over)• whose main place of work is at home or they claim not to have a main place of work• who use advanced ICT for communicating with clients and/or (other) business partners.- 26 -
New Ways to Work 2000European Telework4.3.4 Supplementary teleworkTeleworker category VSupplementary teleworkers in our definition are those who would fit into the home-based category describedabove but for the fact that they spend less than one full day teleworking from home per week. Withinsupplementary telework work tends to occur in addition to the regular working time which is spent at thecentral establishment site.4.3.5 Telework in telework-centres/ telecottagesBecause we think that distinguishing telework-centres from traditional branch establishments of multi-siteorganisation has become utterly useless (for a discussion see Gareis/Korte 1999), ECaTT includes no data onthe number or share of employees working at such centres.4.3.6 Combinations of different kinds of teleworkIn future, we expect individual types of telework to become something of a boucquet highly qualified andflexible workers can chose from according to their personal and (especially) business needs. "Work where youwant, when you want" is the buzzphrase here. For example, a highly qualified employee might divide hisworking time between stretches he or she spends at the office (to communicate face-to-face with other staffmembers), on the road (to stay in touch with customers and business partners) and in his or her home (to dosome "proper work"). On the other hand, in many occupations telework will be introduced to improve controlover often low-skilled labour (Stanworth, 1998). Here, one cannot expect increasing flexibility of employeesregarding place and time of work. To test these hypotheses, the survey design has to allow for individualsapplying different kinds of telework.- 27 -
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