Twenty million Americans avoid traffic and water cooler gossip
several days a week, choosing instead to do their work at home.
Armed with a computer, phone and fax, they find there's no need
to be present at the office every day. Indeed, contrary to the
image of telecommuters in pajamas catching up on the soaps, many
employers find that telecommuting employees are not only happier,
but also more efficient and productive.
If some of your employees work from home or you're thinking
of allowing such an arrangement, be sure your discussions include
issues of safety and liability. On the one hand, after a media
firestorm in January 2000, the U.S. Labor Department withdrew an
advisory letter claiming that, under OSHA, employers were
responsible for the safety of all work environments, including the
home. "We believe that the Occupational Safety and Health Act
does not apply to an employee's house or furnishings,"
said Charles Jeffress, then assistant secretary of labor, in
Congressional testimony. "OSHA will not hold employers liable
for work activities in employees' home offices." Nor will
OSHA be out inspecting home offices, unless there's been a
severe injury or death related to the telework.
On the other hand, an employee who develops carpal tunnel
syndrome or back problems from working in a poorly designed home
office may well file a workers' compensation claim. And if the
employee's teenager destroys the hard drive on a company-owned
computer, you'll want a policy on who's responsible for
company property in the home.
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You can address all these issues in a telework agreement that
covers office arrangements, hours, responsibilities and who pays
for what. The agreement should also address safety, security of
company property and proprietary information, workers'
compensation and insurance. The arrangements can make all the
difference between being liable for workers' comp on injuries
in a given room during stated hours and being responsible for
anything that happens to an employee anywhere at home 24 hours a
day.
Consider making an initial visit to the telecommuter's home
to see what the office is like and whether the furniture is
reasonably ergonomic. Are there obvious dangers, such as a computer
cord stretched across the route to the kitchen? Is the employee
expecting to be able to work full time from home while caring for
small children?
Does your standard business insurance policy cover liability for
injuries outside the office? Suppose a client visiting a sales rep
at her home office falls and severely injures her back. Or suppose
an employee working from home uses e-mail to launch a campaign of
sexual harassment against employees at the office. While these are
unlikely scenarios, you'd better make sure they're
covered.
Likewise, does the employee's homeowner's policy cover
damage to company property used in the home? If not, make sure
it's covered on your business policy.
Even more important is being careful about which employees you
allow to telecommute. Those who are self-starters, responsible and
loyal to the business are less likely to use the privacy of the
home office to defraud the business or neglect their duties.
Jane Easter Bahls is a writer in Rock Island, Illinois,
specializing in business and legal topics.