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upstart writes:

Study: When employees don't have to commute, they work:

When employees are allowed to work remotely, they most often use the time they would have spent commuting to the office working.

On average, employees save 72 minutes in commute time every day when they're allowed to work from home rather than in the office, according to the Global Survey of Working Arrangements (G-SWA) study performed by the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER).

"That's a large time savings, especially when multiplied by hundreds of millions of workers around the world," the study said. "These results suggest that much of the time savings flow back to employers, and that children and other caregiving recipients also benefit."

On average, those who work from home devote 40% of their commute time savings to primary and secondary job tasks, 34% to leisure, and 11% to caregiving.

[...] The data was collected from a survey of about 19,000 to 35,000 employees based on two survey periods. The G-SWA survey took place in 15 countries in late July and early August 2021 and in an overlapping set of 25 countries in late January and early February 2022. The workers surveyed were 20 to 59 years of age, and all had finished primary school. In addition to basic questions on demographics and labor market outcomes, the survey asked about current and planned work-from-home levels, commute time, and more.

Other recent studies have arrived at similar conclusions.

[...] Over the past year, some organizations have demanded employees return to the office at least some number of days a week, while others have required a full-time return to office. A recent survey by Resume Builder found that 90% of companies will require employees to get back into the office at least part of the week this year. And a fifth of those companies said they would fire workers who refuse.

Other studies, however, have found there is no measurable performance improvement when a worker is in office versus working from home. According to Owl Labs, a maker of videoconferencing devices, 62% of workers feel more productive when working remotely, and 51% say working from home was most productive for thinking creatively. Only 30% view working in the office as most effective for the same type of work.

"As recession fears loom, many leaders feel an instinct to take more control over work — including by mandating a rigid return to the office. That would be a big mistake," Duffy said.

While most organizations were forced to transition to remote work out of necessity for worker health and safety and business continuity during the COVID-19 pandemic, the shift uncovered numerous employee and organizational benefits of hybrid-work models — including improved productivity and worker flexibility, Duffy said.

Original Submission