Summertime – that’s when Swedes work outside the office

For many people summertime means being on holiday and lazy days, but it can also mean perspiring in hot offices. According to the findings of a new Telia survey, three out of four people in Sweden plan to work outside the office this summer by telecommuting. The survey also indicated that the holiday plans of the family decide the choice of holiday period, and that four weeks off in July is the most popular vacation period.

The survey was conducted for the third year in a row with 4,061 persons from all over Sweden responding to the questionnaire. The clearest trend this year is that Swedes remain interested in working outside the office by telecommuting. One out of five people in the survey stated that they will do more telecommuting this summer than in previous years. The main reason Swedes want to work outside the office is that they feel good doing it. Four out of ten respondents said this was the most important reason for telecommuting. Other significant reasons were that working remotely this way has been a good experience (29%) and that telecommuting has become easier (32%). “Today, people don’t have to be a technical wizard to also connect from locations outside the office. As a consequence, more and more people are discovering the advantages of taking care of part of their work week outside the workplace. This is the most important advantage and reason why so many people want to work from locations outside the office this summer,” says Marie Ehrling, head of TeliaSonera Sweden. Among people planning to work more outside the office, the largest increase was noted among those up to the age of 35, with 27 percent stating they will telecommute more this summer. Men work more outside the office than women – 85 percent, as against 56 percent. In the case of women, it is not because they are less interested in telecommuting – it’s just that they often lack the technical means. July still popular for vacation The month of July is once again the classic month for Swedish people to take their summer holiday, but by a slim margin. In the survey, around 41 percent said July was their choice of vacation month, while 40 percent stated they will go on holiday from mid-July to mid-August. The factors deciding the choice of vacation period was mainly the vacation plans of the family (41%) and those of co-workers (31%), and the school holiday period for their children (23%). Only 1 percent responded that their holiday period was decided by events such as the World Cup for football or the European Athletics Championship. As in 2005, 22 percent of the respondents said they will take five weeks of vacation or more, while 38 percent said they will take four weeks. It is worth noting, however, that men are best at taking the longest vacations. According to the Telia survey, 23 percent of the male respondents said they will take five weeks off or more. The corresponding figure for women is 19 percent. Only 3 percent of the respondents plan to take no vacation at all. About Telia’s Summer Trends 2006 survey In its Summer Trends 2006 survey, Telia surveyed 4,061 working people in Sweden about their summer office situation and their plans for the summer. All of Sweden is represented in the survey. The respondents work at companies that are customers of Telia. The survey period was May 16-22, 2006. The entire report is available in Swedish at www.teliasonera.se/press.