A lot has been said about employees leaving their jobs if their companies refuse to offer remote working or hybrid working arrangements. As many employers have learned over the last several months, the reluctance to return to the office is one of the key drivers of the “great resignation” — a trend of thousands of workers quitting their jobs due to issues such as poor work-life balance, inflexible work schedules and lacklustre working conditions.
In fact, an ADP Research Institute report shows that 64% of workers would look for a new job if they were forced to return to full-time office work.
But flexible arrangements are no longer just about keeping employees happy. Flexible methods of working, in particular hybrid working, are also critical to attracting top talent and strengthening an organisation’s employer value proposition (EVP) — the unique set of benefits employees get by working for an employer.
A recent survey by YouGov and Cloudbooking, providers of workspace management software, found that 67% of US and UK workers would be less inclined to work for companies that did not offer hybrid working arrangements. In contrast, only 27% said they’d be willing to work in the office full-time.
More UK workers pushing for hybrid working than their US counterparts
The survey results, published in the report The Future of Work: 8 Trends in Workplace Transformation, also found that nearly three in every four (74%) UK job seekers consider hybrid working — or the lack thereof — to be important when joining a company. By comparison, approximately one in two (58%) US workers feel the same way, signifying a gap in how American and British workers value hybrid working.
One reason behind this disparity might be the more aggressive push for returning to pre-pandemic life among US-based companies. In a 2021 poll of 2,800 American senior executives, 71% said they would call for workers to work on-site full-time once all pandemic restrictions were lifted. This could mean that US workers are more likely to view their hybrid working arrangements as being temporary.
Meanwhile, UK workers have been much more adamant about making remote or hybrid working permanent. A report by the Policy Institute at King’s College London states that close to 80% of London workers believe that working remotely at least one day a week makes them feel more in control of their work. It also reduces their commuting time — a common pain point among workers in the capital.
Similarly, high-wage workers in the UK have also taken a liking to hybrid working, according to data from the Office of National Statistics. These workers are foregoing the tradition of wanting their own offices as they climb the career ladder, preferring flexible working arrangements instead.
Takeaways for Employers
The results of Cloudbooking’s survey add to the growing chorus of workers around the world wanting a permanent shift to flexible methods of working. For hiring managers, recruiters and employers, these changes in employee attitudes mean that hybrid and remote working will be seen as critical components of talent acquisition in the near future. Employers who refuse to acknowledge this change risk limiting their ability to hire and retain top talent.
Learn more about the findings of this Cloudbooking survey by downloading the report The Future of Work: 8 Trends in Workplace Transformation.
