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From the Harvard Business Review : The study: Nicholas Bloom and graduate student James Liang, who is also a cofounder of the Chinese travel website Ctrip, gave the staff at Ctrip’s call center the opportunity to volunteer to work from home for nine months. Half the volunteers were allowed to telecommute; the rest remained in the office as a control group. Survey responses and performance data collected at the conclusion of the study revealed that, in comparison with the employees who came into the office, the at-home workers were not only happier and less likely to quit but also more productive. The challenge: Should more of us be doing our jobs in our pajamas? Would the performance of employees actually improve if companies let them stay home? Professor Bloom, defend your research. See also, from Forbes: 10 Tips For Working From Home .

From MoneyWatch : For a number of years, it appeared that teleworking was in ascendancy; more and more businesses were allowing employees to work one day a week or more from home, and data suggested that this led to increased productivity, less traffic congestion, and improved morale. Recently, though, a few large companies have done an about face. As was recently reported, Yahoo is one of the most high profile businesses to bring all of its employees in from home. If you were planning to pitch a telecommute agreement to your manager, don't worry. These could well be anomalies -- not a new trend -- and equipped with the right business case, you might be able to persuade your company to allow you to work from home one or more days a week.

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