Remember the good old days when people dressed in suits, wore fedoras, smoked, and drank at work? Ya, me neither. The closest I've come to a situation like that is watching parts of Mad Men episodes set in the 1960s. That depiction of work may look old-fashioned, but there's something us snippersnappers may still have in common with those times: a 40-hour, in-office work week.
According to this NPR story: "U.S. labor laws are perfectly suited to 1960, says University of 
Minnesota sociologist Phyllis Moen. The 40-hour workweek and 9-to-5 workday were all codified in an era when men went off to an assembly line and women stayed home."
But as Bob Dylan--another relic of the bygone era--once sang, "The Times They Are A Changin.'" About half of U.S. companies, according to this report, offer flextime (flexible work hours) and some form of telecommuting (working outside the office). The necessity to be in the office at all times, appears to be, as MXPX once said, "slowly going the way of the buffalo."
The shift is happening because more families have both parents working, meaning flexible hours are a necessity for families trying to juggle work and home life, and because our generation has grown up with technology (i.e. laptops and cell phones) that make flextime and telecommuting work.
I happen to fit both the family and younger-generation demographics. I'm working from home right now because my wife is due with our first child today. Pre-labor started this weekend and my manager told me to stay with my wife and get my work done when I have a chance. Once the baby is born, I will also have some flextime.
Changing work patterns can be a good thing. Drinking coffee from my own mug has its perks (pun intended). However, there is also added responsibility. With telecommuting, the pressure to produce and get the work done, shifts from management squarely on to my shoulders. I don't have anyone checking in to see what I'm doing. If the work doesn't get done, it means that I slacked off.
Telecommuting is becoming more common and is a nice benefit of modern society, but the age-old proverb still applies: "Lazy hands make a man poor, but diligent hands bring wealth."
--Jens
As I've posted on my Facebook page, "I don't want to grow up, because then I'll be expected to go to work." As a freelance photojornalist who is also a hard-core night owl, I gotta love "home-work". I can write after supper, edit photos at midnight (which I often do), sleep in, and submit work whenever I choose. And since my work area - a chaotically-cluttered computer desk - is close to the kitchen, I can get supper going and keep an eye on it while I write.
Ann,
There's nothing better than having a kitchen close at hand. If I worked from home all the time, I'd definitely have to watch my weight.
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