In some industries, remote work is the new normal, while others are still adjusting to remote or hybrid work arrangements that began during the pandemic. According to a 2024 LinkedIn report, 21.9% of U.S. job postings are hybrid or remote, and “remote hiring is more prominent among international companies” than domestic ones.
Having a formal remote work policy is key to ensuring that everyone is on the same page and that your remote work agreements are enforced fairly and equitably.
But what should a remote work policy cover, and how do you account for the needs of different kinds of remote employees? Here’s how to create company policies that set clear expectations for both in-person employees and remote team members.
What Is a Remote Work Policy?
A remote work policy is a set of guidelines that establish when, where, and how often an employee can work remotely. Its purpose is to ensure that remote workers know what’s expected of them when they work off-site, and to mitigate risks related to cybersecurity, state and federal labor laws, and absenteeism in the workplace.
A remote work policy is broader than a work-from-home policy in that it may allow work from a wider range of locations, such as a coworking space. Hybrid work, on the other hand, refers to a mix of telecommuting and in-person attendance at a worksite.
A remote work policy may be part of your overall company policy, or it may be a remote work agreement with individual employees. By setting clear expectations up front, you can avoid having to consider requests on a case-by-case basis or negotiate a flexible work arrangement during the hiring process.
4 Kinds of Remote Work Arrangements
Different industries have different expectations for in-person work, and employees may choose to work remotely for a wide range of reasons. Remote work arrangements tend to fall into one of these four categories.
Remote Work
In a broad sense, a remote worker is any employee who works off-site — either full-time or part-time. This includes distributed teams — in which the entire workforce consists of remote workers — as well as freelancers and independent contractors.
Digital nomads are a subset of remote workers who choose to forgo a fixed office space and can work from anywhere with an internet connection.
Hybrid Work
A hybrid work policy allows for a combination of on-site and off-site work. For example, you might allow employees to work from home three days per week and from a shared workspace two days per week. Ideally, those office days will be the same for everyone so you can schedule team meetings on the days when everyone’s there in person.
Work-From-Home
A work-from-home policy allows employees to work from a home office or another fixed remote work location. They may still be expected to be available during ordinary office hours and interact with co-workers through video conferencing or virtual meetings.
Working from home may be an ADA reasonable accommodation for employees who require a separate or specialized work environment due to a disability.
Field Work
Field workers include team members who work off-site on a typical workday — such as employees who perform audits and inspections. Although field workers have different job duties than other remote workers, they have similar requirements, including the need for a reliable internet connection and an employee attendance tracker.
3 Benefits of a Remote Work Policy
If employees are frequently requesting to work from home, then creating a remote work policy is a way to formalize what may be happening anyway. Even if they aren’t, having a flexible work arrangement can be a great company perk that improves your team’s well-being and increases employee retention.
Here are a few key benefits of establishing a remote work policy.
1. Flexibility
Remote work doesn’t always involve a flexible work schedule or location, but it can. By allowing your employees to choose their own work hours — or at least have the option to vary them from time to time — you can support a healthy work-life balance.
Employees can choose to work when and where they feel most productive: whether that’s from home, from a coworking space, or somewhere else. By eliminating their commute or customizing their workweek, remote employees may be less likely to experience burnout and more likely to report satisfaction with their job.
2. Accessibility
A remote work policy can make your company more welcoming to employees with a physical or mental disability that makes it difficult to work on-site. Anxiety, autism, and ADHD may be covered under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and remote work can be considered a reasonable accommodation for these conditions.
Not only that, but by courting remote workers, you can reach a wider pool of potential employees, including qualified applicants who live in other regions.
3. Reduced Overhead Costs
Maintaining a physical workplace can be expensive, so hiring remote workers allows you to grow your company without increasing your real estate or infrastructure. By varying the days that employees come into the office, you can maintain a smaller workspace or even rent a shared coworking space instead.
Rather than shifting these overhead costs to your employees, consider providing a home office stipend or covering the cost of a coworking membership.
What to Include in Your Remote Work Policy
To be effective, your remote work policy needs to set out clear expectations and be applied consistently to avoid HR compliance issues. Make sure your policy covers these four areas and sets out clear guidelines for each one.
Eligibility
Not everyone at your organization will want to work remotely, but if one team member is allowed to work from home, then other employees with the same job duties should have the same option. If you plan to allow remote work on a case-by-case basis, then set out clear criteria so employees know who’s eligible to request it.
For example, you might allow employees to work from home once they’ve worked a certain number of hours on-site or reached a certain level of seniority.
Use an HR automation platform like Pulpstream to create a remote work agreement template that employees can generate and sign digitally.
Cybersecurity
Working remotely can increase cybersecurity risks if employees are storing information on personal mobile devices or using unsecured internet connections. Train employees to practice advanced data security measures such as using a virtual private network (VPN) and setting up multi-factor authentication when logging in.
Pulpstream offers a self-service portal that employees can use to fill out forms, upload documents, and update their information online. From new hire documents to medical leave requests, you can store data securely to minimize the risk of a data breach.
Payroll and Taxes
Remote work can complicate payroll and tax compliance, especially if remote team members are working in a state other than their usual workplace. Employees may be considered a tax resident of another state or even country, depending on how many days they work there in a calendar year.
Your remote work policy should stipulate where employees are legally allowed to work for long- or short-term periods, and if they need to get permission to do so. Pulpstream makes it easy to track employee attendance from any desktop or mobile device, and even log GPS coordinates to verify an employee’s remote work location.
Communication
Having a remote workforce can expand your ability to maintain a global presence and cater to clients in multiple time zones. But it can also lead to burnout if employees are expected to attend meetings outside of work hours or respond to messages 24/7.
Your remote work policy should set some communication guidelines, such as whether remote team members are expected to work according to their local time or HQ time, and what kind of response times are reasonable for urgent messages.
Standardize Your Remote Work Policy With Pulpstream
A remote work arrangement can benefit employees by giving them more flexibility over their work hours and location, and benefit employers by reducing their overhead costs, expanding their talent pool, and increasing employee retention. But you’ll need a clear remote or hybrid work policy to avoid misunderstandings and compliance issues.
Pulpstream makes it easy to set and enforce company policies with our cloud-based human resources automation platform. Generate a remote work agreement as part of the employee onboarding process, and facilitate remote work and leave of absence requests with our self-service portal and custom rules engine.
Request a demo today to see how Pulpstream can transform your business!
