Widely used since the start of the pandemic, teleworking has a number of advantages, both in terms of productivity and financial savings.

Working at home can avoid a lot of stress in traffic jams, but also sometimes considerably reduce the fuel bill.

Not to mention that meals taken at home are often homemade and therefore cheaper.

The other side of the coin: all this time spent at home leads to an increase in your electricity and heating consumption.

A quantified increase

Many individuals saw the difference from the first confinement. Thus, while 8 million people have practiced teleworking and 5.8 million others have been faced with short-time working, not counting the sick, "EDF's R & D teams (have estimated) the increase in electricity consumption of 5 to 7% per household ”during the spring of 2020, according to a press release published by the energy manager. However, if a large part of the French have since found their way back to business, many still do all or part of their working hours at home.

Based on this observation, the electricity supplier Alpiq, new to the market, recently estimated that a childless couple living in a 55 m2 apartment in the Paris region experiences an increase in their bill of 13 euros per month by being at 100 % teleworking over the year.

Because the prolonged use of your computer, wifi, lighting, not to mention cooking appliances for midday meals, end up weighing on your consumption, knowing that it will also be necessary to add heating in winter .

The right gestures

To control your electricity bill, it is imperative to apply various simple eco-gestures which are also valid for all households. First reflex to have: plug your computer and your printer into a separate power strip that you will turn off whenever you are not using your equipment. If it is a portable model, remember to unplug the charger once the device is fully charged, which will ensure the longevity of the battery. The screen power saving and sleep modes are used to limit the consumption of your computer. Likewise, it is wise to install your workstation in a small room that will protect you from noise, while being easier to light and heat.

In general, remember to play on the off-peak hour device, included in some subscriptions, by running the washing machine, dryer and other dishwasher as much as possible in the evening and at night, or in the middle of the day depending on the time slot defined in the contract.

Finally, energy suppliers generally recommend unplugging the internet box (switching it off is not enough) before going to bed each night to achieve some additional savings.

However, this practice does not resonate well with telecom operators.

In view of the low consumption of this type of device, this would in fact not change much on your annual bill and, on the other hand, would risk damaging this equipment, which is not designed to absorb a systematic voltage peak each time new daily start.

The operators recommend instead to unplug the internet box during long periods of absence.

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Support possible

If the Macron ordinances of 2017 removed the explicit obligation to reimburse the costs resulting from teleworking, the inter-professional agreement of 2005, still in force, provides anyway that the company must bear all the costs generated by the work. .

Several collective agreements impose compensation in this area.

Check with your employer.

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