Leaving home: the emigration of home-office workers - includes related article on an ex-home worker

American Demographics, Oct, 1997 by Kathi S. Allen, Gloria Flynn Moorman

Like emigrants setting sail for a land of golden opportunity, millions of Americans launched home offices in the 1990s. However, many have found that the reality doesn't live up to the promise. The dawn of the 21st century is bringing yet another shift in the ongoing quest for the ideal work situation.

They're sitting in comfortable sweats at their computer monitors. Hot, steaming coffee lies within reach, as does all the technology imaginable--multiple-line phone systems, fax machines, copiers, color printers, modems, and CD readers. They've got plenty of business, and things are running smoothly. But something's wrong. No one's there to share the voyage, and the situation falls far short of Nirvana.

In home offices around the country, a number of problems are surfacing. Many home-office workers feel as though they're working in a vacuum. They feel isolated and struggle with a perception that they're not quite "legit." They lament the loss of support staff, employer-provided educational opportunities, health insurance, pension plans, and paid vacation time. They scramble to find suitable places to meet with clients.

Those who run businesses from home also run the risks of running into zoning violations and IRS audits. They may also have trouble keeping work hours under control, not to mention the difficulties associated with keeping family life and its inherent intrusions at bay. In other words, the flexibility and freedom that come with a home office have their down sides.

As a result of this disillusionment, many home-based workers are seeking another alternative. Some may return to the rat race they left behind. But others are seeking yet another way. In the process, they are creating a growing diversity in the officing of American workers.

PURSUING THE DREAM

Approximately 30 million Americans now work at home at least some of the time. As many as 8,000 people a day join the home-working movement, claims the American Home Business Association. More than four in ten Americans say that owning their own business is something they want to do, according to Roper Starch Worldwide of New York City. This share is highest among those aged 18 to 29, at 63 percent.

The work-at-home market, as defined by a leading market research and consulting firm, contains two major segments: income-generating home-office households and corporate home-office households. The income-producing work-at-home households include "primary self-employed and part-time self-employed." Corporate home-office households include "after-hours workers" who bring work home but are not paid extra for doing so, and telecommuters who work at home but are officed elsewhere.

Typical home workers of either type have been and remain distinctive. Most are married, in their 30s or 40s, and college-educated. This demographic profile is decidedly linked with the professional work they do. Even in a so-called information economy, most people don't have the kinds of jobs that they can do exclusively or even mostly from a home base.

What numbers fail to tell is why people have chosen a home-office setting. For some, it hasn't been a first choice but a fallback. For others, it's temporary until business gets off the ground. And for others, it's a long-term lifestyle commitment. Understanding the motivations of home-based workers can shed light on their needs. It might also explain why some are deciding to give it up.

Corporate Refugees are home-office workers who were "... laid off, reduced-in-force, downsized, rightsized, outsourced, bought out, or fed up with corporate life," according to Dixie Darr, editor and publisher of The Accidental Entrepreneur. In the last two years, 9.4 million Americans became displaced workers. Approximately one in five will end up self-employed, at least for a time.

For Dabblers, working at home is just beyond a hobby. They may be retired and not quite ready for the idea of retirement, or employed and toying with the idea of a home-based business. Some are teachers and corporate workers who moonlight on the side. In 1996, 6 percent of American workers had two or more jobs, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The majority of multiple jobholders have a full-time and part-time job or two part-time jobs. Some do the same type of work on their side jobs as in their primary jobs. Others pursue things closer to their heart if their "day" job doesn't allow it. Most moonlighters don't work at home, but some do.

Home-based Entrepreneurs perhaps best exemplify the most traditional vision of what home-based work is. These people have deliberately chosen to launch a home-based business to realize their entrepreneurial dream. They may or may not stay there. Nesters work at home because family is a high priority. This category includes entrepreneurs who prefer not to leave family for work. Family businesses also fall into this segment.

Techies are "plugged in" and able to "virtual office" anywhere via computers, modems, and networks. Novelty may play a part in their motivation. These workers may work at home in part because they can. Similar to Techies, Telecommuters work from home because they can. They may be less fascinated by the technology, but they have no qualms about taking advantage of it. They are in one place and their employer is in another, but that doesn't matter. Powerful laptop computers that offer off-site access to company networks enable many corporate employees to telecommute part-time. About 7 million Americans did some telecommuting in 1996.