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Should employers of people teleworking full-time also pay for part of their rent (if they don't own their residence) and utility costs?

14 Comments

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14 Comments
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Doesn't matter if they rent or own. In my country, my 100 sq.ft. (roughly 9 square meters) home office is tax-deductible. Too simple to be replicated in Japan.

5 ( +5 / -0 )

I would sure like help with utility bills, especially now in winter!

5 ( +5 / -0 )

Yes, but home offices are already tax deductible, I believe. As are purchases made for use in your home office which include a percentage of utilities, rent (or mortgage payments) and coffee.

1 ( +2 / -1 )

It would be nice, but I worry that this will dampen the incentive to let employees work from home. A better strategy would be for more gov aid in the form tax deduction.

5 ( +5 / -0 )

More aid for people who work independently from home, or run small businesses, or teach.

The big corps should look after the workers at the coalface and resist giving themselves another meaty bonus.

2 ( +2 / -0 )

Utility costs, yes.

I wonder if these companies have paid their employees transport allowance as usual?

2 ( +2 / -0 )

Yes. The company is saving a lot of money by keeping their workers at home and I think they should give those savings to its employees who use their own utilities for work. I raised this at my job last year and was unfortunately shot down like an enemy jet over hostile airspace.

3 ( +3 / -0 )

Some employers will do, if they can afford it, others will do but cut other parts of the income and some won’t pay at all, only demand to do the ordered work. But the more interesting question is, if intensive work is tolerated in rented apartments. The real owner , a company or landlord, must not allow extensive usage of their property compared to only normal use by the people who rented the space or house. It’s sometimes more stress, more walking, more sound, disturbing other people in the house, so the average value of the object sinks and so on. In some cases and some countries you are simply ordered to leave when the owner detects professional working in the place.

1 ( +2 / -1 )

Not quite yet. My company still has a massive and empty building in downtown Tokyo. I am sure they are not making money by my working at home. However, if they follow Dentsupid and sell their building and the employees are permanently bearing the cost of the office then I think some extra compensation or tax deduction is called for.

I doubt they are making money from their big building, but as your employer they have a duty to ensure that you have a warm place to work. If you are paying from your personal pocket to be warm enough to work and have light to see by, they should pick up the cost.

Remember, ultimately the employer (and its owners) makes money by taking an increased risk and benefitting from a gap between the cost at which it buys labour and the benefit it receives that labour. The onus is on them to pick up the costs in the downtimes just as they benefit in the good times.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Unfortunately, I think this is a cost they likely could and will weasel out of. Like compensating for your commute costs specifically when you have historically commuted to work. You'd have to specifically make your case.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Yes, but home offices are already tax deductible, I believe.

Isn't that for freelancers? Would the tax authorities treat ordinary workers in the same way?

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Were you ordered to do telework by your employer? If so, then yeah, they should cover as they would do in the office (I guess they pay for the AC, running water,..).

Did you decide on your own to do telework? If so, then tough luck champ, it was your decision.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

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