The question of remote work continues to worry employers, who are facing demands from a workforce that has grown accustomed to not returning to the office.
Key Details
- The U.S. economy is staring at a year of high inflation, recession fears, and staffing shortages.
- Companies continue to struggle with the issue of remote work, with employers and employees are different pages about how to maintain high productivity and worker happiness.
- Employees feel more emboldened to demand remote or hybrid options or even to quit a job that won’t provide them. At the same time, employers want office cohesion and productivity to improve, using expensive real estate for its intended purpose.
- About 46% of employees are considering leaving their job and finding a new one, according to consulting firm Robert Half.
- Remote work will likely stay for the foreseeable future, serving as a valuable tool for maintaining a happy and productive workforce as the economy faces stressors.
Why it’s Important
Employees were given a taste of remote work in the past two years due to COVID pandemic, and thousands of them are unwilling to return to the office, to deal with traffic and commutes, and leave their homes for days at a time if their work can be done comfortably on a home computer.
“Executives generally fall into two camps on working from home, which surged during the pandemic when workers gained leverage during a tight labor market. Some believe it has advantages, like happier employees, while others say company culture is built in the office,” says Bloomberg.
While studies on remote productivity are showing mixed results, remote work will continue to be a force well into 2023 to retain employees, attract new ones, cut costs during the recession, and maintain an excellent public reputation, Bloomberg reports.
Employees can find new remote work opportunities, even in a tight labor market—47.7% of employees are seeking a raise this year to offset the effects of inflation. As we previously reported, most American workers feel optimistic about job prospects and the labor market, meaning they have little reason to fear seeking new opportunities, especially younger workers in entry-level jobs.
“If anything, the recession has the potential to kill the office entirely, as some employers are cutting office space instead of jobs as a cost-saving measure. And a cost of living that’s outpacing wage increases has left workers searching for higher salaries. It’s all a sign that the Great Resignation may persist as we turn the corner into 2023,” says Fortune.