It’s my usual “Work From Home Wednesday” post…

I try my best to keep in touch with the telecommuting world as much as possible. This means doing my weekly search off news sites for telecommuting stories. Here’s one that grabbed my attention recently…

The General Services Administration is encouraging federal agencies to use more than a dozen telecommuting centers near the nation’s capital for free through September.

The GSA has been offering the telecommuting, or telework, centers since late January to federal supervisors, managers and senior executives as part of a government-wide effort to reduce the area’s highway congestion, recruit and retain qualified workers and lessen work-related stress.

The centers are essentially offsite offices equipped with Internet accessible computers, printers, copiers, fax machines and other equipment.

Only first-time users of a telework center are eligible to participate in this GSA program. They have until May 4 to register.

There are 14 telework centers in the area, including seven in Virginia, six in Maryland and one in West Virginia. Employees can use them as much as possible, depending on space availability.

The agency said using the centers has saved commuters 2.8 million miles of travel and 115,000 gallons of gas.

The overall number of teleworkers in the federal government in 2005 was more than 140,000, nearly 8 percent of the total work force, according to the GSA.

They are co-sponsored by the GSA, universities, cities and other groups and are also available to private sector employees as well.

Title:GSA Offers Free Use of Telecommute Sites

Source:http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2007/03/22/ap3543958.html