Office workers want to break free

One day high bandwidth might mean on top of a mountain

Liberating office workers from their desks could make them more productive, research by BT suggests.

Two-thirds of those questioned in BT's survey said they would be happier and more relaxed if they could choose where they did their work.

The most popular alternative workplace was the beach with 37% of respondents.

But many of those responding to the survey would also be happy to telecommute from park benches, mountain tops or their own back garden.

Son of beach

Wireless networks that swap wires for radio waves are proving popular inside many businesses, but many workers would like them extended to make it easier to work from home or perhaps some much more exotic locations, reveals the BT survey.

Even Mayors can telecommute

Carried out to complement Wireless Broadband Week the survey found that many workers think that teleworking could help them strike a better balance between work and home life.

The survey found that 66% of those responding said choosing a different place to work from would help them reach this balance.

Although the beach was the top location for work weary Britons other locations such as mountain tops (18%) and park benches (17%) were popular too.

Only 4% said they would be happy to work at home in bed.

The survey also revealed the long hours that Britons put in. It found that 28% of people work between nine and 12 hours per day and 57% spend five hours using a computer every day.

"As we spend longer at our computers it's no surprise we want to choose where that computer is stationed," said Steve Andrews, a spokesman for BT.