American businesses have been mandating that workers spend more time in the office. New data shows many workers now support hybrid schedules over remote work.
WHY IT MATTERS – Most workers seem to support returning to their offices in some form. Although support for remote-only work is decreasing, the increased support for hybrid work schedules indicates that working from home is part of the new norm for office-based jobs.
THE NUMBERS – The Ipsos Consumer Tracker, which polled 1,119 American adults from Jan. 9 to Jan. 10, asked respondents where they were working:
- Half of respondents, 50%-55%, only work in their offices.
- The other half was roughly split between remote and hybrid work.
In past polls, slightly more respondents answered they worked remotely more than hybrid, until now:
- New data shows a 7-point shift in respondents working hybrid over remote.
To see if this was indicative of a trend, Ipsos asked respondents if their opinion of the “right mix” of remote and office work had changed recently:
- 29% now want to work from home more often than before.
- 14% now want to work at the office more often than before.
BOTTOM LINE – Some form of remote work, such as hybrid schedules, seem to be here to stay even after COVID-19 policies have ended. Hybrid work allows businesses to save costs with smaller offices and allows workers to spend more time being productive rather than commuting.
GO DEEPER – Are people finally returning to the office?