Snow chaos makes the case for home working

With new research showing Britain lost up to 124 million working hours in just one snow-filled week, many are calling for more home-working to tackle the problem. A survey of over 2,000 adults, carried out by YouGov, found that 74 percent of British workers were affected by the winter conditions, with 45 percent facing travel disruptions.  

Some Brits were also forced to stay at home due to school closures and 11 percent had to postpone or cancel business meetings. Despite the difficult conditions, almost half (48 percent) of workers felt under pressure to get to work and maintain ‘business as usual’,  11 percent couldn’t get in to work but worked from home, while 12 percent were not able to work at all.

“The weather seen in the first week of 2010 had a catastrophic effect on employees and businesses throughout the country, with millions of pounds lost and productivity severely hindered,” commented Andrew Millard, director of eCommerce, EMEA for Citrix Online’s GoToMyPC. “In severe weather, being equipped with a virtual office that provides a ‘just like being there experience’ is the best insurance for businesses. Having collaboration and remote access tools is not only the ultimate ‘quality of work’ improvement, but the cornerstone of an effective business continuity plan that mitigates the devastating impact of lost productivity.”