Yesterday we looked at a survey that says that only 7% of workers feel that the office is the most productive workspace available to them. Today we’ll look at some of the benefits of flexible work arrangements, as well as what form they might take.
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Employer Benefits
Employees report being willing to make bottom-line saving sacrifices in exchange for telecommuting options:
- 29% of respondents said they would take a 10% or 20% cut in pay.
- 22% are willing to forfeit vacation time.
- 15% said they would give up employer-matching retirement contributions.
- 81% of respondents also say they would be more loyal to their employers if they had flexible work options.
Improved Health
People surveyed believe flexible options would positively impact their health:
- 97% say a job with flexibility would have a positive impact on their overall quality of life.
- 79% think it would make them healthier.
- 87% think it would lower their stress.
Reasons for Wanting Flexible Work
Since 2013, work/life balance (79%), family (52%), time savings (48%), and commute stress (47%) have been the top four reported reasons people seek flexible work.
- Time savings has outranked cost savings as a factor in seeking flexible work for the past 4 years.
- 72% of today’s flexible jobseekers have had round-trip commutes over double the national average, which is approximately 50 minutes.
- Of those who telecommuted in 2015, 22% telecommuted more this year than last year.
- Only 3% of respondents worry a lot that a flexible work arrangement will hurt their career progression.
Types of Flexible Work
The most in-demand type of flexible work arrangement continues to be 100% telecommuting (86%), but flexible schedule (73%), partial telecommuting (49%), part-time work (48%), alternative schedule (48%), and freelance (44%) are also in demand.
Demographic breakdown of the 3,153 respondents are:
- Ages: 20 to 29 (12%), 30 to 49 (54%), 50 to 59 (23%), 60+ (11%);
- Education: high school degree or equivalent (4%), some college but no degree (16%), associate or bachelor degree (48%), graduate degree (32%);
- Career level: entry-level (10%), experienced (58%), manager or senior level manager (32%).
For more information on this survey click here.