TEXT D 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
tardiness and absenteeism by eliminating commutes, allows periods of solitude
for high concentration tasks, and provides scheduling flexibility. In some
areas, such as Southern California and Seattle, local governments are
encouraging companies to start telecommuting programs in order to reduce
rush-hour congestion 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 seduced by rosy
illusions of life as a telecommuter. A computer programmer from New York City
moves to the tranquil 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 reality. Although the media has paid a great
deal of attention to telecommuting, in most cases it is the employees’
situation, not the availability of technology that precipitates a telecommuting
arrangement. That is partly why, despite the widespread press
coverage, the number of companies with work-at-home programs or policy
guidelines remains small. According to the passage, how does telecommuting benefit management
A．It enables workers to work intensively without being disturbed by colleagues. B．It can reduce the rush-hour congestion. C．It can free workers from office. D．It can stabilize the staff since they can better take care of the family.