The world of remote working has drastically evolved over the past year, and the future of this work arrangement is expected to look even different in a post-pandemic world.
According to Limeade Institute’s Employee Care Report 3.0, 71% of respondents said they worried about less flexibility in the future.
It’s clear that many professionals have grown accustomed to remote working policies and are not prepared for a full return to the office once the pandemic subsides. In fact, a survey from FlexJobs found that 55% of respondents said their productivity grew when working remotely.
Additionally, the benefits of remote working, like cost savings, lack of commute and scheduling flexibility are perks that workers want to hold onto in the post-pandemic era.
“I’m not surprised to see that more than half of people working remotely during the pandemic, even under these strained and unusual circumstances, appreciate its benefits to such a strong degree that they would leave their current jobs in order to keep working from home,” said Sara Sutton, founder and CEO of FlexJobs. “The landscape of remote work has permanently changed as a result of Covid-19, and its impact will be felt in the job market and the workplace well into the foreseeable future.”
For many, flexible working in the future will likely come in the form of hybrid work arrangements that merge both remote and in-office work arrangements. Even large companies like Microsoft and IBM have announced their commitment to long-term hybrid work models in order to maintain the flexibility employees have come to love, while also offering a place of solace outside of workers’ homes.
