There are now about 61,000 tele-workers in the Republic and the rate is significantly above that of other European states, according to new research.
While the number is high for Europe, it still lags significantly behind the rate in the US, according to Emerge, a management consultancy firm which released the figures.
It estimated that up to 40 million people in the United States work away from the office. It said many Irish employers were still reluctant to allow employees to work outside the office, despite the substantial savings which can be made.
Emerge argue that flexible working arrangements such as tele-working could increase productivity (some US studies have claimed that productivity rose by up to 33 per cent through tele-working.)
The research was presented at a conference in Dublin yesterday called "Vision 2020 - Flexibility and Virtuality at Work".
Ms Terri Morrisey, a partner in Emerge, said the 61,000 people worked in a variety of occupations and "not just in information technology".
She expected the level of tele-working to increase considerably in the next five years because employees would demand more flexibility. If employers did not offer this, employees would simply get another job, she added.
Also speaking at the conference was Ms Anne Heraty, chief executive of the recruitment company, CPL. She said: "In reality, the office no longer exists as a physical space but is instead a complex network of contractual relationships supported by telecommunications."
She added that "not all talented people can work conventional hours". She said tele-working could be done without losing out on wages and career prospects.