The State of Remote Work - July 2022 Q2 Quarterly Report

Welcome back for another edition of the WWR State of Remote Work report!

Now that we’re out of the worst of the pandemic’s grip, many companies are pushing for a return-to-office migration. However, employees are banding together to keep remote work on the table forever.

So will the world’s top CEOs win over their teams? Or will empowered employees find new roles in the ever-expanding remote work landscape?

We’ll explore the current state and future of remote work in this report to answer these questions, share some eye-opening stats, and more!

The Top 3 Remote Work Trends To Know About in July 2022

Sources: IVANTI/FORBES | FORBES

1. Demand for remote jobs is through the digital roof.

According to an Ivanti survey presented in Forbes, 87% of respondents admitted that they don’t want to work in the office full-time. And a whopping 45% revealed that they’d be “happy to never step foot in an office again.”

These feelings may explain the staggering jumps in recent internet searches for remote jobs. Forbes analysts noticed spikes in searches for:

“work when you want remote jobs” increased 556%
“what remote jobs are in demand” surged 357%
“remote positions” climbed 85%
“remote part time jobs” increased 105%

To recruit and retain skilled employees, estimates now show that 25% of all jobs will be remote by the end of 2022.

Not being able to work remotely has turned into a dealbreaker for many people because:

2. The perks of working remotely outweigh raises and promotions.

Economic and financial historian Natacha Postel-Vinay says there’s more than enough proof that employees who work from home are more productive and happier.

People have been able to trade their long, expensive, stressful commutes for activities that contribute to their overall health and wellness. When people were asked why they wanted to continue remote work:

40% said they save money working remotely
48% enjoy spending less time commuting
43% prefer the better work-life balance WFH offers

These reasons may be why over 71% of surveyed employees admitted they’d be willing to give up promotions and raises to continue working remotely.

3. Smart companies are learning that employees should only have to go to the office “when it makes sense” to do so.

Susan Nealon, Chief Marketing Officer at Eagle Hill, believes people don’t need to be in the office five days a week to be productive team members. And she’s not alone.

Stressors like commuting time/expense, schedule conflicts, distracting coworkers, abysmal work-life balance, etc., can harm an employee’s mental health. Unhappy employees are statistically less motivated, collaborative, and productive.

So Nealon suggests saving in-office work for times when teams need to get together. Then the majority of individualized work that requires focus should be done at home.

Despite these positive remote work trends and hybrid work options, some top companies are still fighting for employees to return to the office full-time.

The Return To Office Standoff: Employees Win the Edge

It’s not going so well for companies desperately trying to lure their teams back in-house. This situation is generating major friction between employees and top employers like:

SpaceX and Tesla. Recently, CEO Elon Musk said remote work was “no longer acceptable” in a leaked memo. Musk stressed that anyone wanting to work remotely must report “a minimum of 40 hours in the office” first “or leave.” So much for a healthy work-life balance.

Apple. The fruit tried to get their employees to work in-house at least three times per week. A thousand employees joined forces to express how inefficient and inflexible the move was, calling it a total waste of time. Many said the decision makes them feel like school kids being told where to be and what to do.

Goldman Sachs. The financial powerhouse took a poorly calculated risk by making it mandatory for employees to return to the office. Only half the team showed up.

So What Does the Future Hold?

Employers must embrace workplace flexibility if they want to retain talent.

While some employers are demanding a return to office life, other companies like Yelp are smartly adapting to the remote work shift.

Once they realized their in-house utilization rate hovered at just 2%, Yelp closed its Chicago, New York, and Washington, D.C. offices. They also downsized their Phoenix location.

Rather than forcing employees to give up WFH, they made strategic adjustments in the right direction and found success.

Organizations unwilling to adapt will likely struggle with unhappy, unproductive employees and lose their best people, which many teams simply can’t afford right now.

If more employees turn to remote companies to avoid the right-to-work-from-home headache, The Great Resignation will continue to power on.

The Latest News Articles About Remote Work (July 2022)

These news articles on the future of remote work are definitely worth checking out:

Final Thoughts on the Current State and Future of Remote Work

We’ve been doing these State of Remote Work Quarterly Reports for two years now, and we’ve never been more sure that remote work is the future.

Employees want the flexibility working remotely offers, so much so that they’re willing to give up raises and promotions for it. This means more employers must be open to WFH if they want to keep and recruit the best talent for their teams.

Join us for our State of Remote Work Report next quarter to see if our predictions come true! 😀

Want to work remotely forever? We Work Remotely is the planet’s #1 remote job board. Browse remote positions all over the world, see the top remote companies hiring, and more now.

You can also dive into the WWR Learning Portal for tips to help you grow in your dream remote career.

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