16.11.2020

How has Covid-19 Changed Office Working Habits?

Adapt Global Group has published the results of a large survey of UK office workers to better understand people’s experiences of working from home, and how it has changed their attitude to offices and shared workspaces.

Specifically, it looked at whether the Coronavirus pandemic is creating a cultural shift towards remote working, and how office workers themselves feel about these changes, including:

What support employers are giving staff working at home
How people’s home office set-ups compare with their main (employer) office
Which working patterns employees would ideally choose
The safety measures needed to make people feel comfortable returning to work
How people expect to split their time between the home and office in the future
Differences between demographics

Highlights and key statistics include:

42.8% of office workers do not have a dedicated workspace at home
63% of people with school-age children have no dedicated home workspace
60% of home workers only have one PC screen
69% of home workers do not use an ergonomic office chair
34% feel isolated working from home
28.3% of people report being less productive working from home
53% report working longer hours at home, than in the office
66% of employers have not financially contributed to employees’ home offices
The number of office workers expecting to work over 3 days a week in the office has dropped from 78% to 46%
Only 10.3% of people would choose to go back to full-time office work
47.5% of people would choose to work in the office at least 2 days per week
The top reasons for using offices in the future will be for collaboration and social purposes, with only 30.4% citing ‘Everyday Work’ as a reason to visit the office
52% or workers expect office workspaces to be socially distanced, to feel comfortable

Speaking about the results, Garry McKay, Managing Director for Adapt Global Group said: "It’s clear from the responses that in the future, most people would like to strike a balance between office and remote working. Employers will need to take necessary steps to ensure employees feel safe when they go into the office. They will also need to ensure remote workers are supported, not just in terms of providing suitable ergonomic equipment, but also emotionally, to reduce feelings of isolation and maintain engagement."

The full report is available here.

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