A new report surveying the reception of return-to-office (RTO) mandates in US workplaces has suggested remote work It can be psychologically healthy, although some tensions escape the office.
The report (PDF) titled “Return-to-Office Mandates and the Future of Work,” published by Great Place to Work, the self-proclaimed “global authority on workplace culture,” offers several key findings: Workers are 27% more likely to enjoy their jobs, 60% less likely to quit, and 67% more likely to put in more effort if they can work wherever they want.
Another important finding states that “employees of color reported finding relief from unconscious bias and code-switching when working remotely,” in the same way that research has also shown that Neurodivergent employees may burn out more easily thanks to the energy needed to mask their condition.
RTO NO THANKS
If you're thinking, “wait, these numbers are a little low,” well, it's fair to say there's a sizable hole in the study: 65% of all respondents worked on-site anyway, only 16% worked remotely full-time, and 20% did so “sometimes.”
When I was asked about this Art-TechnicaGreat Place to Work pointed to its sample size of 4,400 workers as evidence that the survey is still representative of remote and on-site workers, but frankly, it's not, is it?
There is some reluctance in this regard. “Remote work is not a magic bullet [emphasis theirs] for a better workplace culture,” which is nominally true in the sense that it rules out things like salary reviews, management hierarchy, team structure and the annual leave policy. However, if remote employees are generally happier and more productive than their office-based counterparts, which the study does indicate, then that suggests it is a boon.
For example, in the report, Great Place to Work defines a “great workplace” as, in general, a place that fosters a healthy work-life balance, cares about its employees as people, and “fosters a psychologically and emotionally healthy workplace.” It’s no exaggeration to say that these things are easier to achieve and maintain an overall vision if employees can choose where they want to work.
More simply, remote work gets more people to work and, as even Great Place to Work has suggested, makes more people comfortable at work. So at least allowing employees to choose where they work seems to make sense.
AND for he umpteenth timedemanding RTO because your infrastructure is pathetic or pretending to care about “connection” blatantly puts the blame squarely on the employee, who shouldn’t have to, And fortunately, to a large extent, they have not. taken the bait.
Via Ars Technica
