Changes in the workforce are beginning to emerge as we suffer through 6 months of the COVID-19 pandemic. Matt Mullenweg, CEO of Automattic, the parent company of WordPress and Tumblr blogged, “This might be a chance for a great reset in terms of how we work.” Slack co-founder and CEO Stewart Butterfield told the BBC “We all know that work will never be the same, even if we don’t yet know all the ways in which it will be different.” Recent reports from Owl Labs and staffing firm Robert Half put numbers to what many have sensed – the nature of work has changed to work from anywhere.

Work from anywhere benefits

The Owl Labs State of Remote Work report and Robert Half 2021 Salary Guide (PDF) looked at work from anywhere. The reports found unexpected benefits and challenges. Employee expectations have shifted as 69% of full-time workers in the U.S. are working from home during the COVID-19 pandemic. The change in the nature of work has benefits for employees and employers.

Employees are seeing economic and personal benefits from the change in the nature of work. Owl Labs reports that workers are saving almost $479.20 per month on additional expenses related to work. That is nearly $6,000.00 a year savings. U.S. Federal Highway Administration reports that U.S. road traffic fell by more than 25% during the lockdowns. Traffic levels dell to the lowest level since 1995. As a result, Owl Labs found that the average WFM employee saving 40 minutes per day on the daily commute. That totals to over three workdays per month which can be dedicated to personal objectives.

Work-life balance

Remote work has mental health and work-life balance benefits, too.

• 77% of respondents told Owl Labs that having the option to work from home would make them happier.
• 77% report that working remotely would make them better able to manage work-life balance.
• 72% of all survey respondents agreed that the ability to work remotely would make them less stressed

In 2013 old-school Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer, claimed, “Speed and quality are often sacrificed when we work from home.” She was wrong. Employers are also gaining benefits from the new work from anywhere. 20% of employees told Owl Labs they worked more hours per week during the pandemic – for the same pay.

During COVID, the average work from anywhere employees worked an extra 26 hours each month. Which is nearly an extra day every week. Despite claims to the contrary from old-school managers, worker productivity has improved. 75% of people working from home report they are the same or more productive during COVID-19. In 2020, people are using video meetings 50% more than pre-COVID-19.

Being able to work remotely some of the time also makes the employers more attractive to staff. Respondents told the researchers that with remote work:  

• 80% would feel like their employer cares,
• 74% would be less likely to leave their employer,
• 59% would be more likely to choose one employer over another in their next job if they offered remote work.

If working from anywhere was no longer an option after COVID-19, almost 70% of respondents would be less happy. Almost half would look for another role that allowed remote work. Robert Half found that 60% of workers want to work for an organization that values its staff during unpredictable times.

80% of full-time workers told Owl Labs they expect to work from anywhere at least three times per week after the lockdown. Robert Half also found that 74% of employees want to work remotely more frequently following the pandemic.

Increase surveillance

Of course, this is not all puppy dogs and rainbows. Employers may increase surveillance of WFH staff. Firms uncomfortable with the work from anywhere movement can turn to software track employees. Productivity monitoring is available from Aware, ActivTrak, Time Doctor, or Teramind.  PwC has developed a facial recognition tool that logs when employees are away from their computer screens while working from home.

The Guardian reports that interest in Teramind’s product has tripled during the pandemic. When Teramind’s “agent” is downloaded to employees’ computers, they can measure employee time spent on different windows. It can playback or live-stream a view of an employee’s screen and record their every keystroke. It can also raise a flag if certain predetermined words are typed. Eli Sutton, the firm’s head of operations told the paper that 70% of Teramind’s clients are concerned about productivity. He said, “Teramind is an extra set of eyes to make sure distractions aren’t causing issues.”

Forty-three percent of survey respondents told Owl Labs that if their employer started monitoring their WFH activity as a way to track productivity they would be unhappy or leave.

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Having an expanded remote workforce alters the dynamics of work. Employees will no longer be bound by geography to find the best opportunity. Employers can expand their pool of candidates. The work from anywhere movement will also raise tensions between old-school managers who are about control and their remote employee’s privacy.

Stay safe out there!

Related article

• 20 major companies that have announced employees can work remotely long-term (Business Insider)

Ralph Bach has been in IT long enough to know better and has blogged from his Bach Seat about IT, careers, and anything else that catches his attention since 2005. You can follow him on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter. Email the Bach Seat here.