Surveys show that while employees and management are mostly in agreement on the frequency of in-person work days, they disagree about productivity when working from home. New data also shows that although more men are opting to work from home, more women are really doing so.
In many organizations, the exact strategy of return-to-work is still in progress. At first, many employees were happy to be back, but as hybrid work has taken root some are pushing back on mandated in-the-office days. Now it is the facility managers’ task to create office space that offers something employees can’t experience by staying at home – FacilitiesNet points out.
Employees and management are on the same page in terms of return-to-work rules
A new study from the Building Owners and Managers Association shows that in most cases, employees and management are on the same page in terms of return-to-work rules. The “2022 BOMA International COVID-19 Commercial Real Estate Impact Study” reports that more than six in 10 people surveyed – employees and management – report they want to be back in the office three or four days per week.
The survey includes answers from more than 1,200 “office-space decision-makers and high-level influencers”. The report shows that 86% of respondents said their in-person office is vital to their business.
72 % would renew their lease
Of interest for building owners, 72% of respondents said they’d renew their lease if it expired today. That’s up from 38% in the same survey in 2021. But also, 70% of respondents said they’ll reassess their space needs, up from 55% last year.
Gender plays a role
SEO agency Clickslice analysed recent data to reveal working-from-home behaviours of men and women with 2,850 people surveyed in total. The data, published in September, has revealed that although more men are opting to work from home if they are able, more women are working from home all or some of the time – Facilitate Magazine reports.
38% of women surveyed are working from home all or some of the time, compared with 35% of men. 42% of men asked said they were unable to work from home, compared with 34% of women.
Joshua George, CEO of Clickslice, said: “It’s interesting to see how gender plays a role in working-from-home behaviours. While more women are working from home either all or some of the time, more men are choosing to work from home if they have the choice between that or the office.
Productivity issues
“However, research also shows that bosses and workers disagree about productivity when working from home. In a recent survey by Microsoft of more than 20,000 people, bosses worry about whether working from home is as productive as being in the office. About 87% of workers felt they worked as, or more efficiently from home, yet 80% of managers disagreed.
“This discrepancy is something that both business owners and workers should be aware of to ensure that there is no confusion or resentment about where people choose to work.”
