Telecommute: What traffic? Workers with high-tech skills stay home, bypassing urban sprawl and being paid well, too.

Determined to get away from snow and freezing temperatures, Bert FitzGibbons told his boss a few years ago he was leaving New York — with or without his engineering job.

Fortunately, his boss let him keep his position. Like many telecommuters in Central Florida, he works for a company based up North.

"I don’t find it hard to work at home," FitzGibbons said. "I don’t have the interruptions I have at the office. . . . [The home environment] is a lot more controllable. That’s a very big plus to me."

Warm weather and the overall high quality of life in Florida have lured workers with high-tech skills such as FitzGibbons to the Orlando area. Residents are drawn to telecommuting because urban sprawl and traffic congestion make driving to work a pain. Also, some telecommuters said, northern companies offer higher pay than most local firms do.

Ashima Singal | Sentinel Staff Writer

Full Story: http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/osceola/orl-otelecommute2206jan22,0,6351525.story?coll=orl-news-headlines-osceola