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Telecommuting-- substituting the computer for the trip to the job ---- has been hailed as a solution to all kinds of problems related to office work.
For workers it promises freedom from the office, less time wasted in traffic, and help with child-care conflicts. For management, telecommuting helps keep high performers on board, minimizes tardiness1 and absenteeism by eliminating commutes2, allows periods of solitude3 for high-concentration tasks, and provides scheduling flexibility4. In some areas, such as Southern California and Seattle, Washington, local governments are encouraging companies to start telecommuting programs in order to reduce rush-hour congestion5 and improve air quality.
But these benefits do not come easily. Making a telecommuting program work requires careful planning and an understanding of the differences between telecommuting realities and popular images.
Many workers are seduced6 by rosy7 illusions of life as a telecommuter. A computer programmer from New York City moves to the tranquil8 Adirondack Mountains and stays in contact with her office via computer. A manager comes in to his office three days a week and works at home the other two. An accountant stays home to care for her sick child; she hooks up her telephone modern connections and does office work between calls to the doctor.
These are powerful images, but they are a limited reflection of reality. Telecommuting workers soon learn that it is almost impossible to concentrate on work and care for a young child at the same time. Before a certain age, young children cannot recognize, much less respect, the necessary boundaries between work and family. Additional child support is necessary if the parent is to get any work done.
Management too must separate the myth from the reality. Although the media has paid a great deal of attention to telecommuting in most cases it is the employee's situation, not the availability of technology that precipitates9 a telecommuting arrangement.
That is partly why, despite the widespread press coverage10, the number of companies with work-at-home programs or policy guidelines remains11 small.
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1 tardiness | |
n.缓慢;迟延;拖拉 | |
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2 commutes | |
上下班路程( commute的名词复数 ) | |
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3 solitude | |
n. 孤独; 独居,荒僻之地,幽静的地方 | |
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4 flexibility | |
n.柔韧性,弹性,(光的)折射性,灵活性 | |
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5 congestion | |
n.阻塞,消化不良 | |
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6 seduced | |
诱奸( seduce的过去式和过去分词 ); 勾引; 诱使堕落; 使入迷 | |
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7 rosy | |
adj.美好的,乐观的,玫瑰色的 | |
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8 tranquil | |
adj. 安静的, 宁静的, 稳定的, 不变的 | |
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9 precipitates | |
v.(突如其来地)使发生( precipitate的第三人称单数 );促成;猛然摔下;使沉淀 | |
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10 coverage | |
n.报导,保险范围,保险额,范围,覆盖 | |
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11 remains | |
n.剩余物,残留物;遗体,遗迹 | |
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