And there are many reasons: family stress, whether that be the necessity to seek day care, elder care or a myriad of issues in between; the desire, regardless of family situation, to have more control over one's life (in a world that is perceived as spinning out of control); or the current labor shortage, which empowers employees to seek newfound latitude in the workplace.
Truth be known, the practice of workplace flexibility isn't as widespread or progressive as the media -- or e my colleagues would have you believe.
Personally, I'm glad, because the longer others lag behind in this area, the longer companies like ours have the competitive advantage of hiring and retaining the most talented employees, as well as using this as a sales tool to land, and again retain, the best clients.