Since the declaration of the pandemic in the early months of 2020, there has been a significant change in the workforce.
Businesses had to adjust their strategy and adapt quickly to survive. Most opted to offer their services online, and enterprises that rely heavily on human labor encouraged their employees to work remotely.
While there has been a significant increase in remote work worldwide over the last few years, the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the WFH (Work From Home) movement to new levels. Based on US statistics analyzed by Flex.jobs and Global Workplace Analytics, there is a 44% increase in people opting to work from home in the last 5 years and 91% in the last 10.
Another study by Lenovo suggests that 87% of employees who either were encouraged or required to work remotely by their employers as a result of the pandemic, were already ready to make the shift to working from home.
Here are several factors why work from home is here to stay:
People who work from home have benefited a lot from avoiding stress brought about by daily commutes. There is no need to take the bus and get seated with someone who might be a bad egg. Forget about expensive cabs when public transport is unavailable. Say goodbye to penalties incurred by being late because of chaotic traffic.
Now you can spend what would have been that commute time with family or doing other things like improving your skills.
Apart from stress caused by traffic, another highlight that plays a big part in the switch in the working environment is office politics.
Sure, there are office politics, even in the online setting. However, it is more tolerable because workers won’t need to deal with overbearing co-workers in-person.
Introverts benefit a lot with this setting and find they are way more motivated and less anxious.
Also, without additional drama, employees are happier. And when employees are happy, they are less likely to get sick, which means reduced absences and higher productivity.
Working from home helps you save.
There will usually be initial setups to buy the required equipment to work from home, e.g., internet subscription, electric consumption, headset, a proper desk, chair, etc.
However, it is also good to keep in mind that these are initial investments, and most are not recurring expenses (apart from wear and tear in office equipment that may need occasional replacement).
Data from the Census Bureau in 2018 indicates the average work from home employees can earn an extra 10-20% per year more than a traditional office job when working for overseas business. With the savings on transportation and take out food, you can be in a position to save an extra 10-20% extra.
Add to that a life of less stress (longer travel time = less sleep, workplace politics, etc.), and the future looks bright.
Imagine spending more time with family and have rounded work-life balance.
The flexible work schedule makes it possible for remote employees to bond with their family members, friends, and do healthy activities like yoga, pilates, running, etc. There are no missing important events, and they have more control over their overall well being.
There are many benefits for people who want to work from home if they are serious about it. If there is a silver lining brought by the pandemic, one of them is, going/working online seems to be the way forward.
Are you planning on working from home? Philteamfinder can help you get started here
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