Management Concerns Include Suitability, Security, and Costs of Telecommuting

In our examination of barriers to telecommuting in the private sector, we found that decisions on whether an organization ultimately adopted telecommuting programs or expanded them over time was heavily dependent on the resolution of three concerns: identifying the positions and employees suitable for telecommuting; protecting data; and controlling the costs associated with telecommuting. These laws and regulations include those covering taxes, workplace safety, recordkeeping, and liability for injuries. Because several of these laws and regulations predate the shift toward a more technological and information-based economy in which telecommuting has developed, their application to telecommuting is still evolving and unclear at this time. Second, federal wage and hour law and regulations may also pose a barrier to telecommuting programs in both the private and public sectors.
What GAO Found

Telecommuting refers to work that is done at an employee's home or at a job site other than a traditional business office. Perhaps the biggest challenge to establishing and expanding telecommuting programs in both the public and private sectors is management's concerns about the types of positions and employees suitable for telecommuting, protecting proprietary and sensitive data, and establishing cost-effective telecommuting programs. Some federal and state laws and regulations, including those governing taxes, workplace safety, workforce recordkeeping, and liability for home workplace injuries, are also potential obstacles to telecommuting. Overall, the application of state tax laws to telecommuting arrangements, as well as other laws and regulations enacted before the transition to a more technological and information based economy, is evolving and their ultimate impact remains unclear.