Teleworking and Development Issues and Policy Considerations

Cecilia Ng

UNU/INTECH 1

TELEWORKING - working from a distance/away from the main office with the support of information and communication technologies (ICT)

TELETRADE - REMOTE WORK ACROSS NATIONAL BORDERS

2

Framework on Teleworking

Homebased Individual Single location eg. Telecentre In-house Teleworking Satellite company (eg. call centre) National Outsourced International (teletrade) Multiple location Individual (freelance consultants) Companies (business partners, subcontractors etc.) Homebased Single location Multiple Location 3

TELEWORKING - The future of WORK IN THE INFORMATION SOCIETY. WHY?

• • • Increasing digitisation of information Part of the trend towards more flexible forms of work Part of the trend towards decentralisation and outsourcing of work 4

The future of WORK IN THE INFORMATION SOCIETY. (cont.)

• Provides choices for people in terms of where they work (especially in information processing jobs) • Potential for a better quality of life through increased choice and autonomy over working lives 5

Benefits of Teleworking to Developing Countries (by overcoming barriers of time and space)

• • • • • • Increase in productivity Increase in efficiency Increase in global competitiveness Create value-added employment opportunities Lead to sustainable development – bring work to remote areas – create jobs for disadvantaged e.g women, poor, disabled Lessen rural-urban migration 6

WHAT JOBS CAN BE TELEWORKED?

• • • • • • Management Sales and marketing Other IT specialisations (eg. Website managers) Graphic design Consultancy Writing and editing/journalism • • • • • • • • Translation Research Data entry and typing Secretarial work Telephone operators/counsellors Accounts Administration Desktop publishing 7

Home-based Teleworking

• In Italy, Telecom staff at seven directory enquiry service offices have been given the opportunity to work from home, equipped by the company with a computer, modem, fax machine and telephone 8

Telecentres/Mobile teleworkers

• In England in 1994, Digital Equipment closed down its regional office in Newmarket, replacing it with a very small ‘telecentre’ for secretarial staff only. The remaining 90+ staff have become ‘flexible workers’, working from home or whilst on the move 9

Call centres

• In Ireland, staff at a hotel reservation agency in Cork take calls in seven European languages from about sixteen countries. Callers dial toll-free numbers in their own countries and their calls are automatically routed to Ireland.

10

Teletrade

• • In the Philippines, data entry workers have been inputting text and compiling the catalogue for the new National Library in Paris.

In Barbados, staff (almost all women) handle insurance claims from policy holders with a Canadian insurance company 11

DIFFERENT TYPES OF CONTRACTUAL RELATIONSHIPS

• • • • PART-TIME - CORE EMPLOYEES FULL-TIME - CORE EMPLOYEES FREE-LANCED INDEPENDENT SUB-CONTRACTOR 12

ISSUES AND POLICY CONSIDERATIONS.

13

Socio-cultural

• • General lack of awareness & exposure to the concept and meaning of teleworking and its various forms Skeptical and/or negative attitude to teleworking by society generally: – lack of trust of management – lack discipline & integrity and cannot be trusted to be self-directed – view that Malaysians prefer face-to-face interaction – lack of appreciation of family support esp. for home-based telework 14

Infrastructure

• • • • Hardware - high costs of installation, high investment costs in ICT equipment Software - proprietary software for teleworking systems is expensive; other ‘business’ software is expensive Services - relatively high cost of telecommunications; instability and unreliability of telecommunication lines & power supply Access - uneven distribution of services, telephone penetration rate of 5 per 100 in rural areas 15

Human resources

• Lack of IT skills for new entrants into the labour force from secondary school, especially from the rural areas • • IT illiterate/deficient employees Many IT and other graduates do not possess the skills set and knowledge base required by industry • Lack of teleworking skills among managers and teleworkers 16

Regulatory Framework

• Contract & terms of employment for different categories of teleworkers lacking • Need for networking, support and protection of teleworkers, including the self-employed • the site operation of teleworkers could pose problems in terms of housing and zoning issues eg. home-based, telecentres.

17

Role of the State

• • • Need to prioritise sectors and occupations which are amenable to teleworking Disseminate information regarding opportunities in telework and teletrade Need to monitor and evaluate the progress of teleworking and teletrade in the country and elsewhere 18

Role of the State (cont.)

• Ensure that rural and poor areas and marginalised groups to benefit from teleworking as part of the process of sustainable human development 19

CONCLUSION

• • • • • • STUDY POTENTIAL OF TELEWORKING STUDY BARRIERS AREAS OF INTERVENTION PILOT PROJECTS MONITORING DIALOGUE AMONG STATE, BUSINESS AND CIVIL SOCIETY 20