Most companies struggle getting workers back to the office, survey finds

COVID-19 turned the world of work upside down, and now employers are realizing just how much has changed.

According to the non-profit think tank The Conference Board, nearly three-quarters (73%) of  the 185 organizations recently surveyed reported challenges getting workers to return to the workplace. Because of this pushback, 68% of organizations are considering or implementing talent strategies to increase on-site work.

The survey, titled “The Reimagined Workplace 2023: Striking a Delicate Balance,” also revealed that the push for on-site work may be hindering efforts to retain workers. More than 70% of respondents from organizations that are mandating an on-site work policy reported difficulty retaining workers.

“To attract and retain talent, the C-suite will need to develop policies that balance workplace flexibility with the cultural and social benefits of on-site work,” Robin Erickson, vice president of human capital for The Conference Board, said in a statement. “While every organization is different, hybrid work is the likely solution in many instances. And, as these survey results make clear, offering hybrid work is a critical tool in the toolkit for attracting and retaining workers, especially amid a strong labor market that continues to defy expectations.”

Other insights from the survey:

• More than half of workers still work remotely at least part of the time; 76% of professional and office workers work a hybrid or remote schedule.
• Decreasing productivity might not be remote work’s fault. Indeed, according to The Conference Board, U.S. labor productivity peaked in 2021, when 38% of all U.S. workers were remote. And as remote work has declined, so has productivity.
• Employee wellbeing, including mental health and sense of belonging, are suffering. More than 40% of surveyed human resources leaders reported decreased employee mental health from six months ago, 32% reported decreased sense of belonging/inclusion, 31% reported lower levels of employee engagement, and 30% reported a decrease in employee intent to stay.
• Businesses are—or soon will be—cutting costs. Nearly 30% of respondents noted that their organization had implemented layoffs within the previous six months, and 19% reported that they expect to implement layoffs in the next six months.
• Employee wellbeing has declined more in organizations that recently implemented cost-cutting measures. Of organizations that have implemented cost cutting measures, 46% reported a decline in employee mental health, compared to 36% who did not cut costs.

Related: Remote workers balk at returning to the office, study finds

The survey highlights the multiple competing objectives among which HR leaders must strike a delicate balance, according to The Conference Board. As organizations navigate the world of work in the pandemic’s aftermath, they must contend with rising uncertainty about the long-term impacts of remote work on productivity and profitability, an economy with elevated inflation and recession risk, and an ongoing labor shortage.