More than half of UK workers have rejected the idea of working in an office again, research conducted to mark the third anniversary of the UK entering COVID-19 lockdown has revealed.
The statistic emerged from a UK-wide national survey commissioned by global asynchronous video interview platform Willo to gauge how working habits in the UK have changed since the first lockdown was introduced to combat the spread of COVID-19 on March 23, 2020.
Some 56 percent of people in the UK said lockdown had made them unlikely to consider working from an office, with older workers least likely to do so – where 77 percent said they would not consider it.
Regionally, Wales has the highest number of workers unlikely to consider working from an office again (63%), while six in 10 people in the South East of England also said they were unlikely to. Meanwhile, around a third of workers (32%) also said they would quit their job if employers would not allow them to work from home. People under 45 were even more likely to do so (16–24-year-olds 44%; 25–34-year-olds 52%; 35-44 year-olds 44%). Just 14 percent of over 55s said they would leave.
Around 40 percent of respondents even said they would retrain to do a job that enables them to work remotely.
What about the rest of the country?
Workers in Greater London are most likely to quit if unable to work from home, with around half (48%) saying they would leave their job if bosses asked them to return to the office full-time.
Workers in the North East of England were least likely to quit, with more than a fifth (22%) saying they would leave if refused the right to work from home.
Working from home became essential for the majority of the nation during COVID-19 lockdowns in 2020 and 2021, when the UK Government advised people to work from home even once restrictions eased. Only ‘key workers’ such as medical staff, emergency services, and shop workers were excepted.
Employers have increasingly called on staff to return to offices, with a separate survey conducted by Slack published earlier this year revealing 50 percent of leaders want workforces back on site.
Around half of the respondents to the Willo study, conducted by Opinion Matters, said they would now consider applying for a job that enables them to work from home (47%), with the same number going a step further and considering roles that enable them to work from anywhere in the world (47%).
There have been permanent changes
Around four in 10 respondents also said they will never spend as much time commuting as they did before the pandemic (39%), with those under 44-years-old again less likely to do so.
Euan Cameron, founder of Willo, said: “The Covid-19 pandemic drove the biggest change to working habits since the industrial revolution. It changed what we thought was possible when it comes to work, and for the better.
“Sectors that were previously tied to offices have been liberated, with staff enjoying increased flexibility and choice, and employers reaping the benefits of more appropriate premises and access to talent once off limits due to geography or time zone. It’s a win-win.
“Three years is enough time to show a true shift in worker and employer behaviour. It’s no secret that lockdowns were the final hurdle on remote working going mainstream, but what this survey shows is that working from home is now considered a right, not a perk or privilege. If workers aren’t afforded it, they’ll vote with their feet and I think we‘ll see more of that as years progress.
“It goes beyond work from home too – to work from anywhere. More than half of Willo’s workforce is based outside of the UK, and it brings huge benefits in terms of diversity, talent, and productivity. It provides access to a global talent pool rather than just regional.
“Nobody will forget the pain suffered during the Covid-19 pandemic, but if there’s a silver lining it’s the acceleration of much-needed changes in the way we live and work, and they’re here to stay.”
Amelia Brand is the Editor for HRreview, and host of the HR in Review podcast series. With a Master’s degree in Legal and Political Theory, her particular interests within HR include employment law, DE&I, and wellbeing within the workplace. Prior to working with HRreview, Amelia was Sub-Editor of a magazine, and Editor of the Environmental Justice Project at University College London, writing and overseeing articles into UCL’s weekly newsletter. Her previous academic work has focused on philosophy, politics and law, with a special focus on how artificial intelligence will feature in the future.
