Majority of Remote Workers Would Quit If Forced to Return to Office: Study

A majority of remote workers would quit their jobs if forced to return to the office, according to a new study.
In FlexJobs’ recent report, 57 percent of remote workers surveyed said they would “absolutely” look for a new job if they were not allowed to continue working remotely. And 35 percent said they actually know someone who has quit or is planning to quit because their company required them to return to the office.
“Obviously, an employer has the right to call employees back to the office from remote or hybrid positions at any time, but for many who have had these jobs since the early days of the pandemic, working from home during all or part of the week has become a way of life, and they’ve scheduled virtually all other priorities around it,” Alex Beene, a financial literacy instructor at the University of Tennessee at Martin, told Newsweek.
The numbers could indicate a significant turnover issue as companies continue to look for ways to be fully in-person again, as just under 25 percent of workers said their employer had already instituted a return-to-office mandate.
The report is based on a poll of 3,000 American professionals between August 5 and August 18.
Overall, Americans were eager to leave their jobs in pursuit of higher wages or more flexible work, as 67 percent said they planned to change jobs in the next six months.
But key things like a promotion, remote work and a better company culture could convince some workers to stay, according to the survey. Between 33 percent and 38 percent of workers said these factors could convince them to stay in their current roles.
“Changing careers can have a profound impact on all aspects of life,” Keith Spencer, a career expert at FlexJobs, said in a statement. “It’s critical that those considering a change start with strategic planning, research, and an organized job search plan before making a decision. This preparation can help workers make more informed decisions and navigate the ups and downs of career transitions.”
Working remotely continues to be a huge draw when it comes to attracting talent, and it can even convince some employees to accept lower salaries. In the report, 58 percent of workers said they’d accept a salary decrease if it meant they could work from home.
“If a job has been done remotely for years, why can’t it stay that way? Requiring everyone to return without a solid business reason only demotivates employees,” HR consultant Bryan Driscoll told Newsweek. “Businesses need to stop pretending this is about collaboration when it’s really about control. If companies want to retain talent, they need to evolve with their employees, not against them.”
For many Americans in remote jobs, it’s no longer an option of “if they would” quit, Beene said, but instead a necessity based on their new living arrangements.
“We have a generation of employees that live in locations far removed from their actual employer due to work-from-home policies,” Beene said. “For many, hours of commuting may either not be feasible or not add up financially to make sense given their current role.”
And because many remote workers don’t feel a productivity loss, companies are still “vying for talent and willing to accommodate,” said Kevin Thompson, a finance expert and founder and CEO of 9i Capital Group.
As a result, workers still largely have the power over their employers, Thompson said.
“The only reason they would not is if businesses began to collude and mandated everyone return to work,” Thompson told Newsweek. “As long as the market remains free and fair, the ability to find remote work should actually continue.”
In the August jobs report, 22.8 percent of employees had teleworked for some or all of their job, up from 19.5 percent from the same time last year. And those who worked remotely all the time surged from 10.3 to 11.1 percent, showing that employers might be loosening up their rules around back-to-office mandates.
Putting productivity aside, Thompson said the main loss from remote work has been in corporate culture.
“I don’t believe you can build a culture through Zoom, but that does not mean it is not possible,” Thompson said. “The consequences of remote work won’t be felt for a number of years.”