As employees head back into offices either full-time or following a hybrid model, the concept of fully remote work is becoming much less common than it was over the past two years.
And now, a new study from research group WFH Research suggests that having employees come into the office might actually be to the company’s benefit.
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Workers who spent time in the office spent 25% more time in “career development opportunities” than those who worked remotely, according to the survey. Over 2,400 employees were surveyed for the study under the condition that they were able to work from home when desired.
The career development opportunities analyzed included mentoring other employees, participating in formal training offered by companies, and spending time with professional development and learning activities.
According to the data, in-office workers spent 40 more minutes weekly (on average) than remote workers mentoring others, as well as 25 more minutes on formal training.
The report also said that almost 50% of workers surveyed who had the option to work remotely are following a hybrid model, and only 20% are remote full-time.
Still, it looks like some workers are opting for remote: LinkedIn’s Workforce Confidence Index from February showed that 28% of workers surveyed were working primarily remotely, a 3% uptick from data collected in October 2022.
At the peak of the pandemic in May 2020, it was estimated that there were over 48.7 million remote workers in the U.S.