Telecommuters should be subject to the same workplace rules as their on-site counterparts, but the policies may need some tweaking, a labor lawyer said during a Monday workshop.
"There's a reason you have these policies and procedures. There's a reason you have a human resources department," said Chuck Knapp of the Faegre & Benson law firm in Minneapolis.
"Oftentimes, because people are off site, we forget that these policies and practices should be applied to them," he said.
About 50 businesspeople and others interested in telecommuting -- working at home using a computer or phones -- attended the workshop during the Upper Great Plains Technology Conference and Trade Show at the Fargodome.
Roughly 28 million Americans work at home, at a telework center or satellite office, on the road, or a combination of the three, according to a 2001 survey by the International Telework Association & Council. That figure is estimated to grow to
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30 million by 2004.
Employers mulling telework jobs for their workers should be aware of several legal issues, including handicapped-accessibility, fair-employment practice laws and collective bargaining agreements, Knapp said.
Knapp said he recommends all his clients develop telework policies and employee expectations before starting a telework program. The policies touch on everything from insuring company property to protecting confidential data.
The Fargo-Moorhead area offers a good example of how tax laws complicate telecommuting, Knapp said.
If a Fargo company has home-based workers in Moorhead, it could be subject to tax laws on both sides of the Red River.
"For smaller businesses, that (the higher taxes) could become an issue," Knapp said.
Jane Anderson, director of the Minneapolis-based Midwest Institute for Telecommuting Education, said businesses' goals for telecommuting should be better employee retention and increased satisfaction for both employees and customers.
Microsoft Business Solutions of Fargo has sales representatives who telecommute from all over the nation, said senior recruiter Sharon Miller. The company employs roughly 1,000 people in Fargo and 4,000 people nationwide.
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"It has proven to be very good for us," said Miller, who works most Fridays at her home in rural Mapleton, N.D.
Although progress has been made in recent years, the lack of high-speed Internet access is still an obstacle to telecommuting in some areas, Miller said.
Readers can reach Forum reporter Mike Nowatzki at (701) 241-5528
