Staying in touch with the office by email or video conference gave workers more control and left them energised, less stressed and with fewer distractions, the study, published in the Telecommunications Journal of Australia, reported.

Researchers surveyed people who had teleworked in the local government, banking, education and IT sectors.

Two days a week was the most time workers preferred to spend at home before missing the social interaction.

Paul Giles has worked for a Melbourne advertising agency from his home in Gordon, northern Sydney, for 11 years.

''Now, when I go to offices, I notice how much wasted time there is and how much more focused you can be when you work on your own,'' he said.

He has remote access to the agency's server, uses iChat to video link with colleagues and travels to Melbourne once a fortnight.

About 17 per cent of Australian workers have some telework arrangement but Dr Rachelle Bosua, who co-wrote the study that consulted 25 people, said some industries, such as IT, were better suited to it than others and were increasingly saving office space by giving staff remote access to company servers.

But some companies say telework impedes collaboration. Google's chief financial officer, Patrick Pichette, told entrepreneurs this week his company wanted as many workers as possible in the office.

''There is something magical about spending the time together, about noodling on ideas, about asking … 'What do you think of this?''' he said.

The Australian Services Union warned health and safety requirements must still be met and workers should not be left isolated, unaware of promotion opportunities.