When it comes to flexible working arrangements, most small businesses appear to be all talk and no action.
That's the finding of research conducted by Galaxy for business solutions provider Citrix, suggesting the Australian economy is missing out on productivity gains worth billions of dollars each year.
The survey of 1024 office workers across the country found that 56 per cent of people are not able to work from home, while 72 per cent want the opportunity.
"The harsh reality is the majority of organisations do not trust their employees to be as productive at home as they do in the office, even though the economic and social benefits offers a compelling argument that we can no longer ignore," Citrix regional director Lindsay Brown says.
The report released on Tuesday also found two in three workers say that working from home would make a significant difference to their quality of life.
News that makes sense
Your trusted source for staying up-to-date with the world around you. Get free daily news updates and analysis, straight to your inbox.
The research finds that 82 million hours a week are spent commuting, suggesting that small and medium sized businesses that embrace flexible working stand to gain a significant boost in productivity and performance.
Workers, too, could save nearly $109 million per week in travelling costs.
Businesses that continue to pay "lip service" to flexible working could also find themselves hit by a higher turnover of staff and new employee training costs with three-quarters of employees saying they would consider changing to another job that offers flexible hours.
At the same time, nearly three-quarters of people aged 55 to 69 said they would work more hours and stay in the workforce longer if flexible options were available.
This could add a staggering $135 billion of productivity gains to the economy.
"Continuing to eschew flexible working in favour of ways of working familiar to our parents and grandparents presents serious consequences for Australia's future," Mr Brown said.
