Almost half of Brits put off working from home by poor telecoms services

Flexible working offers are increasingly being taken advantage of, with£43 per cent of staff having worked at home at least once in the last 12 months. This figure rises to?55?per cent for £18-34 year olds. But poor telecoms services are sending people back into the office.

This is according to?uSwitch research, which pointed outthe classic “knew such troubles existed, but didn’t think they applied to me” scenario. That telecoms services?remain a problem though proves worrying given its impact on business and staff wellbeing.

In fact, the issues proved so severe that£5.9m employees’said they wouldn’t work from homeAgain. Broadband speeds were too slow to get any real work done, 32 per cent exclaimed. Mobile users (32 per cent as well) pointed out patchy networks.

uSwitch also maintained 25 per cent of Brits have had to work late as a result. And those with no choice having no office per say, freelancing or stuck at home due to a problematic commute spent around 308m in 2016. This was for “alternative measures” like going to a caf , buying a signal booster oreven switching providers.

?We’ve found that employees who can influence their work environment have better job satisfaction and improved wellbeing,”?Ewan Taylor-Gibson, broadband expert at uSwitch.com, said of the results. ?For employers, a physical presence is no longer a prerequisite.

“The idea of rolling out of bed and firing off emails to clients may sound pretty idyllic to a number of Brits, but many have had to forego home working altogether for fear that they could become stranded without internet access.

“Being cut off during a crucial client call or while trying to meet a deadline strikes fear into the hearts of a good number of employees, and not without good reason, with some having lost business due to issues with their broadband and mobile service.”

Here are some of the issues employees have faced due to poor telecoms services: