Office Employees Value Flexibility in COVID-19 Era

U.S. employees are re-examining their relationship with their offices due to COVID-19, said CBRE Hana, New York.

Most workers still view the office as a critical place for connecting with colleagues but value the flexibility that comes from working remotely, CBRE Hana found from polling more than 1,000 office-based employees. 

“Employees are looking to the office as a place to meaningfully connect with colleagues, yet desire more flexible work benefits,” said Hana CEO Andrew Kupiec. “To satisfy this demand, organizations should consider enabling flexible working schedules while continuing to offer an office environment for collaboration and meetings with colleagues.”

As U.S. businesses decide when and how to return to regular operations, law firm Akerman LLP published a guide to help them reintegrate their employees into the workplace and implement new federal, state and local policies and protocols. The Akerman Return to Work Resource Guide includes best practices toward a safe and orderly transition to a COVID-19 “new normal.”

CBRE Hana said office workers would like to work outside the office at least part time and have a place to meet with colleagues for in-person interactions. Nearly all of those working from home or from a remote location due to the virus said there are aspects of working remotely they find valuable such as saving money (62 percent), foregoing work commutes (55 percent) and gaining more control over their work schedule (43 percent).

More than half said they want to work flexibly between the office and a remote location or exclusively work outside the office once the COVID-19 quarantine is over.

However, after working from home or a remote location due to the pandemic, 92 percent of U.S. employees also better appreciate some aspects of working in an office, CBRE Hana said. Many cited “meaningful” in-office connections such as random interactions with colleagues (38 percent), in-person meetings (33 percent) and in-person collaboration (33 percent).

Few workers said they value in-office interactions such as in-office networking events (13 percent), office-sponsored fitness classes (9 percent) and in-office games (6 percent), the report noted. Hana Chief Experience Officer Brian Harrington said such “forced fun” should be reserved for family reunions. “Employees look to the office for productive interactions with coworkers and are happy to leave the games at home,” he said.