Telecommuting Could Save Companies, Workers $53B Per Year

Working at home for two days a week would help businesses' and workers' bottom lines, while cutting back on carbon emissions and stress.

Working from home could save Canadian businesses, employees, and communities $53 billion a year, according to the first white-paper report examining telecommuting. The paper, prepared by Calgary Economic Development, found that for every employee who works at home two days a week, a company would save $10,000 a year, while the employee would save between $600 and $3,500. With widespread adoption, telecommuting could effectively remove 385,000 vehicles from the road and save 390 million litres of gas a year. So far, only about three in 100 employees work from home (this one mercifully included), despite four out of 10 workers having jobs in which they could do so, and eight of 10 saying they'd like to.