ack in March, when many of us swapped boardrooms for Zoom rooms and suit sets for sweatsuits, journalists started imagining a future where remote work became as common as water cooler gossip. In April, up to half of American workers were working remotely, and 60% of these remote workers said they preferred working from home. In June, the computer software company Ciena found that a little more than two thirds of British adults expected to continue working from home after the crisis was over. And in early February, when local governments in China started encouraging remote work, millions of Chinese workers found themselves working from home for the first time.
There are many potential benefits to a future where the “new normal” includes working regularly in pajamas. Working from home can cut lengthy commutes completely, reducing emissions. Remote work can also be beneficial to parents trying to balance work and family responsibilities. With so many considering the perks of a permanently out-of-office workforce, remote work was a central topic at this year’s Global Talent Summit, a virtual forum where leaders from a variety of sectors met to discuss the future of work and education.
At the 2020 GTS, during a discussion on remote work, Diana El Azar, Senior Director in Strategic Communications at Minerva Schools asked, “Is the barrier to enter into the…privileged workplace lower?” Her question targeted a central issue within the remote work debate. Many wonder whether the widespread transition to remote work will make office jobs more available to a wider range of employees. However, the realities of remote work can help indicate whether this outcome is even remotely likely. Currently, only 37% of American jobs could be performed remotely; a European report estimated that the same percentage of jobs could be done at home across the EU.
Further, whether companies will make remote options available to more prospective employees also depends on how much they are to invest in remote work. Companies might not be willing to invest in the technology needed to help remote workers be successful. For example, firms might need to purchase specific software to help workers collaborate remotely, but might not see the purchase as benefitting their whole workforce.
Additionally, hiring and recruiting people remotely might prove incredibly difficult, given hiring and tax laws both internationally and between different areas of the same country are different. Additionally, whether the pandemic will make remote options available in office jobs also depends on the availability of remote positions after the pandemic. The history of remote work makes its longevity in a post-pandemic world questionable at best. After all, companies have been trying to make remote work “work” for almost forty years. However, over the years corporate giants such as BestBuy and IBM have conducted experiments with remote work that have ended in widespread returns to the office. In 2009, 40% of IBM’s 386,000 employees across 173 countries were working from home, but by 2017, thousands were called back into the office. A BestBuy remote work project that began in 2004 was halted in 2013 over concerns that it gave employees too much freedom.
Ultimately, as with many things during this pandemic, we are left to wait and see what the future of remote work will hold. However, despite its many benefits, the odds that remote work opportunities will make office work available to a wider variety of employees remains slim. Past failed experiments with remote work alongside prohibitive upfront costs for employers make it likely that office work will remain for those able to commute for their 9-to-5.
a global affairs media network
Will the Pandemic Remove Barriers to Remote Work?
Photo by Geraldine Iewa via Unsplash.
October 19, 2020
B
ack in March, when many of us swapped boardrooms for Zoom rooms and suit sets for sweatsuits, journalists started imagining a future where remote work became as common as water cooler gossip. In April, up to half of American workers were working remotely, and 60% of these remote workers said they preferred working from home. In June, the computer software company Ciena found that a little more than two thirds of British adults expected to continue working from home after the crisis was over. And in early February, when local governments in China started encouraging remote work, millions of Chinese workers found themselves working from home for the first time.
There are many potential benefits to a future where the “new normal” includes working regularly in pajamas. Working from home can cut lengthy commutes completely, reducing emissions. Remote work can also be beneficial to parents trying to balance work and family responsibilities. With so many considering the perks of a permanently out-of-office workforce, remote work was a central topic at this year’s Global Talent Summit, a virtual forum where leaders from a variety of sectors met to discuss the future of work and education.
At the 2020 GTS, during a discussion on remote work, Diana El Azar, Senior Director in Strategic Communications at Minerva Schools asked, “Is the barrier to enter into the…privileged workplace lower?” Her question targeted a central issue within the remote work debate. Many wonder whether the widespread transition to remote work will make office jobs more available to a wider range of employees. However, the realities of remote work can help indicate whether this outcome is even remotely likely. Currently, only 37% of American jobs could be performed remotely; a European report estimated that the same percentage of jobs could be done at home across the EU.
Further, whether companies will make remote options available to more prospective employees also depends on how much they are to invest in remote work. Companies might not be willing to invest in the technology needed to help remote workers be successful. For example, firms might need to purchase specific software to help workers collaborate remotely, but might not see the purchase as benefitting their whole workforce.
Additionally, hiring and recruiting people remotely might prove incredibly difficult, given hiring and tax laws both internationally and between different areas of the same country are different. Additionally, whether the pandemic will make remote options available in office jobs also depends on the availability of remote positions after the pandemic. The history of remote work makes its longevity in a post-pandemic world questionable at best. After all, companies have been trying to make remote work “work” for almost forty years. However, over the years corporate giants such as BestBuy and IBM have conducted experiments with remote work that have ended in widespread returns to the office. In 2009, 40% of IBM’s 386,000 employees across 173 countries were working from home, but by 2017, thousands were called back into the office. A BestBuy remote work project that began in 2004 was halted in 2013 over concerns that it gave employees too much freedom.
Ultimately, as with many things during this pandemic, we are left to wait and see what the future of remote work will hold. However, despite its many benefits, the odds that remote work opportunities will make office work available to a wider variety of employees remains slim. Past failed experiments with remote work alongside prohibitive upfront costs for employers make it likely that office work will remain for those able to commute for their 9-to-5.
