How Remote Work Is Changing the Workforce

What is a remote job?

A remote job refers to the type of job/work that allows you to work and earn without requiring in-office availability.

With the onset of COVID-19, the transition from in-office work to remote work became an unavoidable requirement. At first, it seemed really tedious and dry, however, with the passage of time, we are witnessing a change in trend for the workplace.

Recent trends of remote workforce expectations:

Research on companies showed that a majority of the big office-based companies are keen on continuing some remote work post-pandemic.

In fact, around 80% of the big company leaders are planning to allow their employees to work remotely at least part-time once the pandemic is over.  Around 47% of them will even allow their employees to work remotely full-time!

All these new trends strike the business approach of ‘work at your choice of place’ or ‘work in your preferred area’.

The current trend is not just being cherished only by companies, in addition to them, a large majority of employees are too keen to learn more on remote jobs rather than in-office jobs.

The reasons are the lucrative benefits and ease of working from home. Research shows that almost 65% of employees are keen on switching to a full-time remote job and around 30% would want to form some sort of a hybrid mix of in-office and remote work per week.

Therefore these current trends and expectations elucidate the impression that a majority of the workforce is highly willing to opt for a remote job and work at the place of their ease. Meanwhile, the companies too are ready to supplement more remote work and make the transition from the in-office job to remote jobs.

This is surely a ‘remote work revolution’ due to the attractiveness and benefits of remote jobs. 

Why are companies keen on switching to remote jobs?

Retaining top talent

• With the transition to work from home, companies will attract and hire the best talent available in the market because of the end of geographical limitations while hiring. A survey conducted by Jobsdive marks the point that almost 27% of workers were ready to work from home mainly because it is somewhat easier to manage. They were even ready to accept a slight reduction in their pay in order to work remotely.
• When businesses are willing to hire full-time workers and that too for remote work, they expect to hire the best workers since the area of the hunt is much larger. Better skills and abilities from far places are easily available for them to hire.

Enhanced productivity

• With the retaining of the best talents, it is obvious that the productivity of businesses will rise to a much higher rate.
• With remote work, employees are able to work at their ease and hence serve better results. This helps the businesses to even expand the area of their expertise and work on new projects.

Reduction in costs:

• If the work is done remotely, it is obvious that the need to maintain and establish expensive workspaces is no more relevant.
• Costs like water, electricity, and wi-fi, etc., are eliminated from the business’s total costs and profits are much higher. In short, working from home is beneficial for all.

Diversification of workforce

• With the ease to hire more workers from regions that are far away from the place of business,  the new hires bring diversity to the palette of the company.
• This diversity in the workforce is not just geographical but also a set of skills, ideas, and creativity. 

Why are workers ready to switch to remote work?

Reduction in personal costs

• With the absence of a requirement of in-office availability, personal costs of job seekers like petrol/diesel cost, parking fees, vehicle maintenance, etc.,  tend to eliminate and workers are able to save more for the future.
• This also brings self-sufficiency and calmness in their working time.

Reduction in stress

• Working in the place of your choice, earning a decent sum of money, freedom to even start your side-hustle, no unnecessary costs, improved savings, and enough time for family and personal care.  All this is what workers expect when they apply for a remote job.
• A work from home job surely provides them with this.  There is less stress as workers are able to take small power brakes. With greater efficiency and ease, workers’ workload decreases and so does their stress.

Access to better work-life balance

• With the facility to work remotely, workers are at peace of mind.
• They tend to feel improvement in their work-life balance. For some, even leisure time increases without any reduction in pay. What else can make workers feel better?

Improvement in access to jobs

• For workers who are not able to find a job in the area that they live in, remote work brings hope and opportunities.
• They are able to apply to the best company and work in comfort from their homes.

These were some of the trends, expectations, and reasons why remote work demand is high.