This article is from page 77 of the 2007-05-22 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 77 JPG
IN her first major speech, the newly inaugurated national president of Macra na Feirme, Catherine Buckley, has called on the political parties to commit to devising and implement- ing a national strategy to encourage employers to facilitate employees in working from home through ‘e- working’.
Speaking last week, Ms Buckley, who is the first woman Macra presi- dent said that employers should be incentivised into allowing workers the option of “e-working’.
‘“Work-life balance has been a buzz- phrase for a few years now, but the
concept should not be discounted,” she said.
“It’s widely accepted that working from home can bring huge benefits, helping workers to organise their time more efficiently, work more effectively and reduce the stress of commuting.
“Studies have also shown that by offering employees a flexible work- ing environment – such as the op- tion to work even part-time from the home — productivity and employee retention levels are increased while costs can be reduced.”
She pointed out that giving people the opportunity to work from home would also be an effective way of al-
lowing local people in rural areas the chance to work in the areas where they are living, providing them with more time to become involved in community life rather than wasting hours commuting.
“If more people were facilitated in this way, it would reduce the number of commuters on our roads, improve peoples’ family hfe and would also mean that less people are wasting hours and hours per week stuck in their cars increasing carbon emis- sions and having a detrimental im- pact on the environment,” she con- abOLeCoe
“While everybody pays lip service to balanced regional development,
it has only had limited success. Yet if companies were to adopt a more enlightened approach in facilitating working from home, I believe they would benefit significantly in terms of staff retention and increased pro- Clie UAL AYAae
According to Buckley, many em- ployers and employees may not be aware of the fact that equipment provided to an employee by his/her employer is not assessed for tax as a benefit-in-kind so long as it is used primarily for business use.
She pointed out that an employer can also provide expenses to cover costs such as heating and light, with- out the employee being taxed.