Workers demand remote work options, or else!
With the pandemic behind us, employers are pushing workers to return to the office full time. But employees are pushing back! Many employees have tried remote work, like it, and are now saying they’d rather quit than go back to the way things were.
Employees who have been working at least some of the time at coworking sites or at home justify their strong feelings by saying they’re more productive and happier when free of office politics and gossip. They also avoid long commutes and benefit from more flexible schedules.
“I learned that my company would have a ‘strong preference’ for local employees to come back to the office. I started job hunting that week and just started a great position that’s fully remote.”
Denied remote work options, workers are quitting
This preference for remote work is getting stronger. In recent survey after survey, employees have hardened their views about the right to work remotely, at least part of the time…or threatened to quit.
In a survey by job services firm Zety, 60% of workers said they would rather quit their job than return to their desk five days a week.
Owl Labs found that 52% of workers would take a pay cut of up to 5% or more for the option to work at least part of the time remotely.
A recent Deloitte/Workplace Intelligence survey found that 66% of financial services leaders working remote or hybrid would leave their firm if required to work in the office full time.
Another study this past summer reported in Fortune said workers likened a full return to the office to a 2-3% pay cut due to higher commute costs, work clothing costs and parking fees. Others cited the high cost of buying lunches at restaurants, where prices due to inflation have jumped almost 9%.
Workers unhappy about not having remote work options or those feeling disengaged from their supervisors and jobs are “quiet quitting” (which entails not saying anything, but undercutting goals or opposing leaders). Others are “loud quitting,” which means actually seeking a new job. Sixty-one percent of disengaged employees are actively seeking a new job.
Workers are equating remote work with quality of life
“My Space Downtown has everything I need, including an endless supply of coffee, an awesome break room and a nice little park next to it for my lunch break…I always feel very productive there.”
— Dusty H.
“Worker resistance to returning full time to the office isn’t just about avoiding the negatives of working in an office,” says Michelle Sparks, manager of Panama City remote work site My Space Downtown. “Those who work at our remote work facility are drawn here because of all the upsides. They feel like they’re part of a family here, but a different family than they had at the office.”
Sparks says remote workers at her coworker site appreciate the relief from office politics or the big-brother approach of bosses walking the floor. “They’re adults,” she says. “They take responsibility for their productivity and don’t need the unnecessary pressure of someone looking over their shoulder.”
Sparks cited other appeals of remote work and coworking at an independent workspace:
A reduced commute
Opportunities for collaboration
Ease of working in medical appointments or childcare check-ins
“Study after study shows these remote workers are more productive and happier,” Sparks says. “The more progressive employers already support offsite work. More traditional employers are slower to adjust, but I believe they’ll eventually have to change to keep top talent.”