In a perfect world, you might have more choices like this one: We’ll give you a decent raise, or you can pass up the money and work from home some of the time.

A recent poll by the National Association of Wholesale-Distributors found that more than half of workers would pass on the raise for the opportunity to telecommute — at least occasionally:

That can be good news in these tight economic times, when companies are struggling to keep afloat and hang on to their valuable employees

One way more and more employers are trying to lower workers’ costs and increase flexibility is to let some employees telecommute at least one day a week.

That can be a big boost to recruitment, retention and employee satisfaction, but it also comes with several challenges.

IT is usually charged with making telecommuting work and finance is dedicated to controlling costs, so you might keep want to keep in mind:

1. Security — In some cases, employers can be held liable when personal information about employees or customers is stolen. Managers need to work closely with IT to make sure employees have a secure set-up before they do any work from home.

2. Ground rules — Establish some firm guidelines from the outset, such as:

• no working on public wireless networks
• family members or others don’t use company equipment, and
• any data in physical form (CDs, paper documents, etc.) must be kept in a secure place.

3. Safety – The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) won’t inspect home offices – or require employers to inspect them. Still, employers should be ready to handle claims of injuries from people working at home.

4. Discrimination –- As with any benefit, there’s always a chance someone might claim discrimination when some employees get the offer and some don’t. A clear policy on telecommuting based on objective criteria can avoid this problem. IT can help establish which tasks can be performed remotely and which can’t.

5. Technology choices — Picking the right tools for telecommuters will require an understanding of roles and responsibilities. Working closely with managers to pick the right tools will be IT’s job.

Tags: costs, pay, raise, recruitment, retention, security, telecommuting