Advance at Work

5 Reasons to Let Employees Work from Home

Written by Salary Specialist
January 23, 2026
5 Reasons to Let Employees Work from Home
Table of Contents

    Telecommuting Can Increase Employee Satisfaction and Productivity

    Research conducted by Pennsylvania State University suggests myriad benefits of working from home. Telecommuting can reduce business expenses significantly and increase employee satisfaction. Here are five reasons companies should consider allowing employees to telecommute on a regular basis.

    1. Less Wasted Time

    Employees working from home have more control over their work environments. Working from home can eliminate the headaches and hassles involved with traveling to work, and employees can invest more time in performing work-related activities without having to waste time on travel or conversing at the water cooler.

    2. Fewer Work/Family Conflicts

    The Penn State study uncovered a startling fact: telecommuting does not blur boundaries between work and family. In fact, telecommuting reduces the conflicts that typically occur between work and family life. Employees call out of work less, and work continues to be accomplished at home at the same rate.

    3. Improved Working Relationships

    Working from home has no effect on workplace relationships as long as management is on board and good communication practices are in place. Employees who maintained regular communication with managers and colleagues through email or phone experienced improved working relationships, according to the Penn State study.

    4. Greater Productivity

    Managers rated telecommuting employees as being more productive than their office-based counterparts. Employees were still capable of demonstrating their value to managers and seemed to have increased the incentive to do so. Additionally, telecommuting involved less travel time than traditional office work. Work commenced at a much faster rate for telecommuting employees because much of the time wasted on travel per day was eliminated.

    5. Increased Job Satisfaction

    Penn State researchers discovered a positive link between working from home and job satisfaction. Additionally, employees who work from home are statistically far less likely to quit. Happy employees are valuable employees.

    Telecommuting is a smart business strategy and a viable option for most organizations. Work from home employment offers businesses the opportunity to reduce costs and increase employee satisfaction. Telecommuting can offer a win-win situation for everyone involved.

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