Almost two decades ago, pregnant with my first child, I asked my then boss for some flexibility in my work schedule once I returned from maternity leave. I proposed cutting back my hours or telecommuting once or twice a week. I was denied.
At the time, my employer did not have a telecommuting policy in place. And I did not see myself as a trailblazer for the organization; I was just trying to create some sort of work-life balance for myself. Had I not been so myopic, perhaps I could have broken ground by negotiating a telecommuting policy — not just for myself but for the institution’s hundreds of employees.
Instead, I quit.
Statistics show my decision is not unique. In a recent survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation, The New York Times and CBS News, 26 percent of unemployed adults aged 25 to 54 are homemakers, many of whom say they plan to return to the workforce if they find a job with flexible hours or some flexibility to work from home.
I get it. I considered opting out of the workforce altogether for these reasons.
Instead, after I quit my job, I cobbled together ongoing freelance projects as well as a convoluted schedule involving college-aged babysitters who cared for my children while I worked in my basement office. For several years, it worked fairly well. I thoroughly enjoyed the balanced work-life situation I created, despite some late night and weekend work, and never missed my kids’ school events or trips to the pediatrician. And for most of the 21st century’s first decade, work was plentiful.
But the recession was tough for independent contractors. We were a logical part of budget cuts. Assignments, especially regular and well-paying ones, became increasingly scarce. I also began to miss collaborating routinely with colleagues, and I figured my kids, both young teenagers by then, were old enough for me to resume full-time work.
But, I told myself, it had to be on my terms. I still wanted some flexibility in my work schedule. So recently, while negotiating my first full-time job offer in almost 20 years, I asked to telecommute one day a week. Again, my request was flatly rejected.
I took the job anyway. But I wish I’d stood my ground.
I try to ignore the depressingly austere exterior of the low-slung office building I occupy eight or so hours a day five days a week, which looks like every other building in the office park, and inside, likely smells like them too, an intermingling of stale cigarette smoke and microwaved leftovers.
I’ve attempted to create an oasis in my office. I bought plants and hung my kids’ art projects to cheer up the walls. I run an essential oil diffuser and a Himalayan salt lamp. Soon, employees I barely knew were stopping by to chat. I enjoy their company. But the idle chatter sometimes keeps me from my deadline-driven work.
When I worked at home, I never had to fend off external distractions. In a five-hour day I could get done an inordinate amount of work. Here, I notice employees stretching their eight-hour days with smoke breaks and regular conversations over cubicle spacers.
Not surprisingly, countless studies show telecommuters often outperforming their office counterparts. I see how. My round-trip commute each day is 60 minutes. It takes me about 30 minutes to identify, iron and dress in business attire. That’s seven and a half extra hours weekly, or about 30 hours per month. Those hours come in handy when dealing with life outside work.
For me, in the past two months, life outside of work has included three pediatrician appointments; kids’ school exam schedules resulting in two weeks of half-day dismissals, no transportation included; a sudden decline in an aging parent, requiring several conversations and trips around the beltway to provide comfort, respite and meals; and a crisis at my husband’s job demanding more of his time away from home.
Apparently, a lot of employers are starting to "get" telecommuting. Thirty-seven percent of U.S. workers report telecommuting — four times more than in 1995 — according to a 2015 Gallup poll. But many employers continue to resist the practice. Telecommuting remains one of the most "culturally misunderstood" workplace practices, says Ellen Ernst Kossek, professor of management at Purdue University.
I believe it. But what am I going to do about it?
Almost 20 years ago, I quit my job rather than attempt to negotiate a telecommuting policy in my workplace. Once again, I’m faced with the same ground-breaking opportunity.
Elizabeth Heubeck (eheubeck@gmail.com) is a writer based in Towson.
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