On Tuesday, Upwork’s ‘Future of Workforce Pulse Report’ revealed that every 4th American will be working remotely in 2021.
As of now, 41.8% of the American workforce remains fully remote. Directors believe that remote work will continue with some 26.7% of the personnel staying home-based throughout 2021.
The study also forecasts that by 2025, 36.2 million of the nation would remain working from their home offices which is an 87% increase compared to the pre-pandemic period.
The report surveyed 1,000 small business owners, HR managers, and CEOs. They also commented that employers now feel more comfortable with remote work.
Adam Ozimek, the Upwork chief economist, adds that COVID-19 and remote work are likely to have a long-lasting impact on how hiring managers think of their companies and that many of them are already altering their long-term plans.
Ozimek also points out that the majority of organizations and their employees have already adapted to the new open location standard and are now very efficient while working from home.
Among others, increased productivity and flexibility are believed to be the key benefits of remote work.
Working from home eliminates in-office distractions, for instance, non-essential meetings and commute time. On the other hand, companies can save on rent, and in-house facilities.
Moreover, time flexibility allows employees to tailor their work hours to their schedule, not the other way around as it was the rule.
HR departments can also profit from this trend. As it may not be always easy to find top talent in a specific area, with the location independence they can now have more opportunities to hire experts in the desired field.