陳蕙雅思教材 - 雅思閱讀精選 (Telecommuting)

Telecommuting

Telecommuting --substituting  the  computer for the trip to the job -- has

been  hailed as a solution to all kinds of problemsrelated to office work.

For workers it promisesfreedom from the office, less time wasted in

traffic, and help withchild-care conflicts.          For  management, telecommuting

helps keep high  performers on board, minimizes tardiness andabsenteeism

by       eliminating  commutes,allows periods of solitude for high-concentration

tasks, and providesscheduling flexibility.

In some areas, such asSouthern California and Seattle, Washington, local

governments are encouragingcompanies to       start telecommutingprograms in

order to reduce rush-hourcongestion and improve air quality.

But these  benefits do not come easily. Making a  telecommuting program

work requires carefulplanning  and an understanding  of the differences

between telecommutingrealities and popular images.

Many  workers are  seduced  by rosy  illusions  of life  as  a  

telecommuter.  A computer programmer from New  YorkCity  moves to the

tranquil AdirondackMountains and stays in contact with  heroffice  via

computer. A manager comesin to his  office three days a week  and works at

home the other two. Anaccountant stays home to care for her sick child;    

she hooks up hertelephone modem 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 andcare for a young child

at the same time. Beforea certain age,     young children cannotrecognize,

much less respect, thenecessary  boundaries between  work and family.  

Additional     child support is necessary if the parent isto get any work

done.

Management too mustseparate the myth from the reality. Although the media

has paid a greatdeal  of attention  to    telecommuting  in most  cases

it  is the  employee's  situation, not  the availability oftechnology

that precipitates a     telecommuting arrangement.

That  is partly why, despite the widespread presscoverage, the  number of

companies withwork-at-home programs or      policyguidelines remains small.

電子交通

電子交通--用電腦取代上班的往返--作為對各種各樣的辦公室工作問題的解決辦法已受 到了歡迎。  

對工作者來說，它承諾不受辦公室的約束，更少的時間浪費在交通上和有助於 解決照看小孩的矛盾。  

對管理者來說，電子交通有助於挽留高效率的工作者，通過省去辦 公室與家之間的來回往返，大大減少工作拖拉和曠工，給予管理者獨處的時間來完成需要高

度集中精神的任務，為管理者提供靈活的時間安排。  在一些地區，如南加利福尼亞和西雅

圖、華盛頓，地方政府鼓勵公司開始電子交通計畫以減少交通高峰時的塞車和提高空氣品質。 但這些益處也來之不易。  

要使電子交通成功需要仔細的計畫並且理解電子交通的現實狀況 和流行的想像之間的區別。 許多工作者被電子交通的美好幻想所迷惑。 一位電腦程式設計

員從紐約市搬到了寧靜的阿第倫達克山，用電腦保持與她辦公室之間的聯繫。  一位經理一

週三天到辦公室，其他兩天在家工作；一位會計師在家照顧她生病的孩子，接通電話調製解 調器的接頭，在同醫生通話之余完成辦公室工作。  

這些是很有震撼力的情景，但也是對現 實有限的反映。 電子交通者很快發現在同一時間專注工作和照看小孩幾乎是不可能的。 在

某個年齡之前，小孩子不可能意識到，更不可能尊重工作與家庭之間的界限。  如果家長要 完成工作，就必須另外照看小孩。 管理階層必須把現實同神話分開。

雖然傳媒對電子交通 投入了極大的關注，但在很大程度上，是員工的實際情況而不是技術的可能性促成電子交通 的安排。  

這就是為什麼儘管有廣泛的報導，具有在家工作專案或行動綱領的公司數目依然 很少的部分原因。