Rapid technological advances, urban congestion/traffic and the increased desire to balance family and work life are few of the many factors that contribute to the growing popularity of off-site work arrangements. While there are multitude of terms such as teleworking, telecommuting or work-from-home to refer to off-site work, the overarching theme is that work is being done away from the employer’s premises. In this paper, the author aims to describe this type of work arrangement, in terms of occurrence, work patterns, and its possible labor market implications.

The study utilizes a two-pronged approach seeking both employees’ and employers’ perspectives. Employees’ insights on their experience and motivation were gathered through an online survey while key informant interview with employers was conducted to shed light into company policies on off-site work arrangements. Findings show that most of the jobs suitable for an off-site work arrangement rely on information and communications technology and home is the primary workplace. While the work arrangement offers opportunities, it also presents challenges both for employers and employees. There are various issues that must be addressed such as safety and health, communications, and support tools and infrastructure, when formulating and implementing off-site work arrangements. Given that there is a pending work-from-home bill, a policy framework would be helpful to enable employers and workers to understand the requirements of off-site work arrangements.
Keywords: flexible work arrangement, off-site work, telecommuting, telework

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Title: A Descriptive Study on Off-site Work Arrangement in the Philippines
Researcher: Miraluna S. Tacadao