3 minute read
Stats
Well over half of Brits are happy to
• Resilience is a critical leadership quality in times of adversity return to work – but all five days in the
office is history
After two years of homeworking due to Covid-19, UK office workers are heading back to their desks - but the overwhelming majority are not doing a full five-day week in the office. That’s according to the latest research from eFax the cloud-based fax solution for businesses, which found that only 18 per cent of workers are back at their offices for the entire working week.
The majority – 52 per cent - are only working one or two days per week in the office, with just under a fifth (19 per cent) managing three days at their old desk. The reluctance to return full-time to offices is also borne out by one key finding – just four per cent of the sample want to return to the old working pattern of being entirely office-based.
In early 2022, eFax conducted a major research project to gain a greater understanding of how UK workers felt about returning to the office. The survey polled 503 UK workers in large enterprises, small to medium-sized businesses (SMEs) and public sector organisations.
Key findings included:
• 52 per cent of UK workers are now only in the office one or two days a week. Only 18 per cent of the sample stated they were back at their desks full time
• These figures were dramatically different in London where only 40 per cent were in for one or two days, indicating that the return to all five days in the office is back in the capital far faster than other regions
• The 45-54 age group is clearly far happier working at home with 55 per cent of the sample in one or two days and the rest of the week at home
• Getting up early (65 per cent), having to wear formal clothing (43 per cent) and the cost of commuting (47 per cent) all act as drags on people returning to the office
• UK workers are, however, well aware of the benefits of working in an office environment. Over half (51 per cent) enjoy the social side of work, collaboration is also seen as critical (47 per cent) and access to technology (33 per cent) and informal conversations (54 per cent) are all reported as important drivers to returning
• 22 per cent of the sample are not very happy to be back at the office at all: a further eight per cent absolutely hate it The return to the office after the pandemic has highlighted a number of issues for employees and employers alike, which enlightened companies should look to address if they want to encourage more workers back into the office. One of the key findings that came out from the research was the neglected and unloved state that workers found their offices when they returned to them after lockdown. A quarter of the sample said that when they returned, they found dead and dying plants. And if that was a shock, 17 per cent said they came back to unwashed mugs, cobwebs, and un-emptied bins. Well over one in four people (28 per cent) came back to offices with no tea or coffee!
If this research highlights anything it is that UK workers are looking to replicate homeworking in the office. We’re now used to a more informal dress code, a loosening of etiquette, plus the privacy to do our jobs without constant interruption. If British businesses want their employees back in the office five days a week, now is not the time to skimp on investing in new technology and workspaces.
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