Blue Collar, White Collar Segmentation of U.S. Mobile Workers
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 that requires them for more than 20 percent of the work week to travel in their building, on their corporate campus, in their metro area, in their region, nationally or internationally.
Performs a job function that requires them for more than 20 percent of the work week to travel in their building, on their corporate campus, in their metro area, in their region, nationally or internationally.
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.
Note that a mobile worker (MW) is not necessarily the same as a business wireless subscriber. An employee may be mobile but not use wireless wide area network (WWAN) voice/data service from a wireless operator to perform his or her job functions.
This report estimates the number of white collar (WC) and blue collar (BC) mobile workers in the U.S. The term "blue collar worker" refers to employees who perform manual labor, such as in a factory; of or relating to wage earners. The term "white collar worker" refers to employees who perform knowledge work, such as those in professional, managerial or administrative positions. This work usually does not involve manual labor, and employees in these occupations are often expected to dress with a degree of formality.
Typically, white collar and blue collar workers use different types of wireless/mobile applications and devices because their job functions greatly differ. Having a sense of the overall size of these two different markets can help companies better focus their product development and subsequent sales and marketing efforts.
