56% of workers know someone who will quit due to RTO mandates
Nearly two-thirds of U.S. workers are willing to take a pay cut in exchange for the option to work remotely.
During the pandemic working remotely was a necessity – but now the majority of U.S. employees actually prefer it to being in-person.
According to a recent study conducted by FlexJobs, a service that shares remote job opportunities, 97% of U.S. workers said their ideal work arrangement was either fully remote or hybrid. Only 3% of employees said they wanted to be in the office full-time.
Despite that, many employers are demanding that workers return to the office, providing little to no flexibility. More than half of U.S. workers said that finding a remote job is more difficult now, than it was at this time last year, according to the study. But that doesn’t mean they are giving up – in fact – many employees are quitting their jobs due to the lack of remote options.
The study found that 56% of workers know someone who plans to quit, or already quit their job, due to return-to-office mandates.
The majority of employees are willing to make substantial sacrifices in order to avoid return-to-office mandates. Nearly two-thirds of U.S. employees said they are willing to take a pay cut in exchange for the option to work remotely. Seventeen percent of employees said they’d take a pay cut of up to 20% in exchange for flexibility.
For many employees, the ability to work from home is one of the most important factors in selecting a job. The study found that 63% of workers said the option to work remotely was more important than other factors such as salary, having a flexible schedule, work-life boundaries and having a good boss.
For many employees, the benefits of working remotely extend to their mental and physical health. Ninety-three percent of employees said that working remotely has made a positive impact on their mental health and 90% said the same of their physical health.
The majority of workers also find that they are more productive while working from home. According to the study, 77% of employees said they got more done while working remotely, than in a traditional office setting. As remote work becomes more and more important for employees, companies will need to adapt their policies.
Related: Work from home rates drop the lowest since the pandemic
“Remote work is incredibly valued by today’s workforce, and with more companies adopting these types of policies, employees are increasingly open to exploring new career opportunities with the flexibility and remote work options they need,” Keith Spencer, career expert at FlexJobs said.