Comp ruling means inviting the boss home

Working from home has many advantages and benefits in 21^st Century life and especially allows people to juggle professional and family responsibilities with more ease.

As a pro-active measure people wanting to work from home should perhaps volunteer a checklist of how they are setting up their home workspace, including photos of the area, proof of proper ergonomic seating and adequate safeguards against injury.

There may be a settling down phase following the Telstra case decision, but home- based workers need to keep in mind that unless their employment agreement specifies it as a hiring condition, they are only allowed to work from home with the employers consent.

A refusal to comply with various safety requirements could see the permission cancelled and the worker ordered back to the office where the boss has more control of workplace safety issues and especially more control over any injury risks to employees.