Ahmed Sherif
Research expert covering IT services and gaming hardware
Return to office vs. working from home - statistics & facts
In the world before the pandemic, the ability to work from home was viewed as a privilege, available only to a limited few with unique circumstances. However, the arrival of COVID-19 dramatically shifted this narrative. The pandemic necessitated an immediate transformation in traditional work models, compelling businesses to implement remote work policies. This swift transition marked the launch of a new era - the era of remote work, a critical adaptation for businesses to ensure their survival and continuity.
Employees around the globe had varied preferences when it came to their ideal work structure. The majority favored a hybrid work model over a fully remote one. In 2022, a significant share of respondents from the Netherlands, India, and New Zealand expressed a preference for office-based work. On the other hand, Canada, the UK, and Brazil had the highest number of respondents opting for fully remote roles.
Employers’ challenges in the remote work era
By 2022, the era of remote work was well underway. However, it brought with it new challenges. According to a survey conducted that year, policy and tax compliance were identified as some of the most significant hurdles to enabling remote work worldwide. As a result, companies have found themselves needing to establish safeguards to enable cross-border remote work for their employees. Additional policies that have been implemented include a time limit on remote work and restrictions on remote work from certain countries.Remote work: flexibility versus isolation
For workers, a flexible schedule was the biggest benefit of remote work, while many also valued the liberty to choose their place of residence. However, remote work hasn’t been without its difficulties: remote workers have reported staying at home too often was their biggest struggle with working remotely, while a number of remote workers reported loneliness as a major struggle with working remotely. Despite these challenges, a significant share of remote workers reported that they were working more compared to last year.Employees around the globe had varied preferences when it came to their ideal work structure. The majority favored a hybrid work model over a fully remote one. In 2022, a significant share of respondents from the Netherlands, India, and New Zealand expressed a preference for office-based work. On the other hand, Canada, the UK, and Brazil had the highest number of respondents opting for fully remote roles.
More companies demand employees return to the office
Since the end of the pandemic, multiple tech companies have initiated return-to-office (RTO) mandates requesting their employees to come into the office for a specified number of days per week. In August 2023, Zoom, the video communications company that helped revolutionize remote work during the pandemic, asked its employees to return to work from the office two days per week. Other tech companies with 3-day RTO mandates include Apple, Google, Meta, and Dell. X, formerly Twitter, is the only major tech company that currently requires its employees to work completely from the office.
