Road to flexible workplace potted with obstacles by Maggie Jackson (The Boston Globe, 4/25/04) has bad news to report. The article referenced two studies, one published last week by the Families and Work Institute in New York and another by University of Iowa professor, sociologist Jennifer Glass, to be published in August. 

"The ''flexibility penalty'' is hard to escape. Although workers increasingly want control over when and where they do their jobs, and many employers see gains in offering telework, job sharing, and similar options, the push toward the new flexible workplace is not without obstacles. Nearly 40 percent of workers say that employees who use flexible work options are less likely to get ahead in their jobs and careers, according to a study published last week by the Families and Work Institute in New York. What's more, this sense of jeopardy may be well-grounded, at least for working mothers, a separate study by a University of Iowa professor shows."

...

"A seven-year study of 324 working mothers by sociologist Jennifer Glass found that managers and professionals who teleworked or worked part time even for some part of that span suffered dramatic wage gaps compared to their peers. For example, women managers or professionals who teleworked five or more hours a week for about 20 months were paid nearly 27 percent less than office workers in similar positions. Glass did not study why this was true, but surmised that the adage ''out of sight, out of mind'' explains a lot. "

If "out of sight, out of mind" is a valid explanation, then the tools and technologies that enable virtual presence will make a difference.  The Telework Consortium's pilots are exploring the use of virtual presence in telework situations.

I'm looking forward to reading Glass' study, scheduled for publication in August in ''Work and Occupations'' journal. I'm also looking forward to getting preliminary results on a number of our pilots around that time.

3:12:45 PM    
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