Hybrid work patterns are shifting as workers prefer to stay home on Thursday rather than Monday.
Key Details
- Many hybrid work schedules have employees in the office Tuesday through Thursday, but recently workers have been opting to work Monday through Wednesday instead, according to WFH Research.
- In the last six months, Friday has ranked as the top day to work from home, with Thursday following closely behind.
- The shift to Thursday begging a preferred day has been a shock to many, as Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday are the most popular in-office days for American and European hybrid workers.
Why it’s news
Remote work has increased heavily since the pandemic as many workers and employers realized that some work can be done just as easily from home.
Many workplaces wanted workers back in the office but didn’t want to fully take away the flexibility of remote work—so they opted for a hybrid schedule. The typical hybrid schedule allows workers to work two days from home and be in the office for the rest of the week.
The most popular schedule has typically been employees working from home on Monday and Friday and being in the office on the days in between. Recently, workers have opted to have Thursday and Friday at home instead.
In the last six months, Friday has been the number one day to work from home, with Thursday following closely behind, according to research from WFH Research. This new schedule of swapping Monday for Thursday has been a big surprise for many researchers.
“It’s a surprise to me that Thursday and Friday now dominate, and Monday is third,” says Stanford University’s Nicholas Bloom. “I had long thought it was Monday-Friday as work-from-home days, but apparently not. I’m honestly not sure why.”