Flexible
working could save UK business as much as £16,000 every year for each employee,
according to new figures.
BT
claims one workstation per employee can cost up to £18,000 a year to maintain
for each desk-based member of staff and, on average, only 42 per cent of all
office desks are in use at any one time.
BT
estimates that it costs just £2,000 per year to provide an employee with
flexible working technology and support.
"Look
around you in the office today," said Mark Hughes, general manager, BT Workstyle
Group. "It is highly likely that you are facing a sea of empty desks.
Businesses are missing a valuable opportunity to capitalise on the cost
benefits of flexible working. Our research shows that you can make annual
savings of up to £16,000 per employee just by improving desk utilisation across
a business.
"However,
it’s important to realise that the benefits highlighted above are derived from
property rationalisation alone. Additional benefits of flexible working include
improved employee productivity, lower travelling costs, reduced absenteeism and
better morale. If you take all these other factors into account, the financial
benefits can add up to a great deal more than £16,000 per employee."
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BT
has saved £350m annually in rent and rates since it implemented its flexible
working scheme, reducing its desk spaces in London from 10,000 in 1993 to 3,000
today. BT forecasts it will save a further £42m in the next 18 months as it
rationalises space further.
