U.S. Mobile Worker Forecast, 2007-2012
iGR defines a mobile worker as any employee who is out of the office more than 20 percent of the work week. Some characteristics of mobile workers include:
A need to be in voice/data contact with customers and/or colleagues during the work day.
Performs a job function which requires them to travel more than 20 percent of the work week either in their building, on their corporate campus, in their metro area, in their region or nationally and/or internationally.
Performs a job function that is not tied to a single physical location (e.g., a desk), requires them to move about, or work in a location that does not have or has limited wired voice/data communication options (e.g., a warehouse, hotel, hospital). Note that employees who solely telecommutes are not a mobile worker; they are remote workers. Some telecommuters are, of course, “mobile workers” assuming they meet the other key criteria.
None of these attributes necessarily require the worker to use a mobile device or wireless data network (WAN or LAN) provided by the organization for which they work. A worker can be “mobile” without needing to use a wireless device; nurses, maids and janitors are good examples. Moreover, many "white collar" workers often deal with work-related issues on their own mobile devices and/or PCs.
In this report, on the basis of its own proprietary research and surveys and a variety of government data sources, iGR estimates and forecasts the number of mobile workers in the U.S. As Figure 1 shows (in the report), in 2007 there were approximately 56,371,386 mobile workers in the U.S. That number is forecasted to rise to approximately 59,676,011 by 2011.
Note that this forecast only applies to mobile workers in U.S. private sector businesses (excluding Agriculture). There are more mobile workers in the U.S. economy if Public Safety, Government and Educational sectors are taken into account.
The growth in the number of mobile workers will be driven primarily by employment growth in job functions which are already mobile. This is the main reason for growth in the number of mobile workers. Of course, the reverse is true as well. A decrease in the number of employees in a mobile occupation implies a decrease in the number of mobile workers.
The introduction of wireless technology does not suddenly make an employee mobile. Job functions either lend themselves to mobility or they do not, but as wireless networks and mobile device technology (laptops, smartphones, ultra-mobile personal computers) become increasingly pervasive, reliable and cost-effective it is possible that certain non-mobile occupations may become mobile simply because the technology and networks make it possible.
Not all of the employees in a “mobile occupation” are necessarily mobile – and they may not be mobile on a consistent basis during a work week, month or year. Just as the actual job functions of the same occupation will vary across industries and employee size of companies, so too does the mobility of that occupation.
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