Sixty percent of UK companies require employees to work in the office for a set number of days each week, but experts warn that this undermines the benefits of remote working.
The findings, from WTW’s Flexible Work Models Pulse Survey, show that the trend for flexible work models is gradually shifting.
The vast majority of respondents (84 percent) said they require more in-office staff presence because they believe that face-to-face interactions boost employee engagement in teams.
Respondents pointed to further benefits such as strengthening corporate culture (72 percent) and enhancing learning opportunities, particularly for junior staff members (69 percent).
However, WTW also found that these perceived benefits contrast with the main benefit of remote work, which is higher staff engagement. In fact, the majority of companies surveyed (86 percent) agreed that employee engagement is increased by having better work life balance, something that remote working promotes.
Further benefits of remote working identified in the survey include promoting attraction and retention of specific roles that could not be filled without remote work options (82 percent) and greater retention (69 percent).
The survey found that while employers justified requirements to attend the office by saying it drives better team engagement and productivity, 61 percent of organisations said that they have no set rules to determine days on site, meaning employees can choose the days they work remotely without restrictions.
Paul Richards, Europe Rewards Data Intelligence Leader at WTW, said: “While employers navigate balancing both corporate and employee needs by encouraging employees back to the office for better engagement and productivity, without a clear structure around designated days spent in the office, organisations will be no closer to achieving improved team collaboration.
“Leaders need to rethink their flexible work models in a structured way that prioritises the employee experience and at the same time achieves corporate goals. Reviewing rewards and benefits and seeking employee feedback ensures alignment with needs and expectations, while taking into account realistic changes that will motivate employees back to the office.”
WTW said that flexible work models are here to stay, but employers will need to find the balance between meeting corporate and personal needs.
Previous research conducted by WTW in 2021, during the height of the pandemic showed that 43 percent of employers anticipated employees would have returned to working fully on-site by now. In fact, only 23 percent of the work population are in-office for the majority of the week, highlighting the impact of enabling positive work-life balance.
Research conducted by WTW in 2023 found that 30 percent of employers were expecting to recruit employees from different geographies as fully remote workers. This strategy was to access an expanded global talent pool, which is in contrast to the current request for more on-site collaboration.
Globally, most employers are achieving the requested number of in-office days, but this isn’t the case across all markets. In the UK, most employers are looking for staff to be on-site for two to three days a week, which is being achieved, but sits lower than the three-day requested average across many other regions.
WTW said that organisations appear to be taking “a gentle approach” to enforcing required on-site staff presence. More than three-fifths (62 percent) of companies are not currently promoting bringing employees back into the office, while 25 percent are improving office facilities, such as improved dining facilities, gyms and physical therapy to encourage face to face interactions. Researchers said that this approach was likely to be due to concerns that if employee needs are not taken into account the employer will see an uptick in attrition.
Employees’ desire for remote work has increased across all regions. Results from WTW’s Global Benefit Attitudes Survey showed that 47 percent of employees indicated they would quit their job or begin looking for a new one immediately, if their employer mandated a full-time return-to-office policy. Almost half (48 percent) of hybrid and remote workers would be willing to take a pay cut of 8 percent on average to be able to work flexibility.
In contrast, remote employees have reported feeling more disconnected from their team or organisation. And employees working from home worry more about the potential negative impact it has on their career development. This is particularly true for younger workers and employees with children, WTW found.
Gaby Joyner, Europe head of employee experience at WTW, said: “There will be a competitive advantage for organisations that are able to create and sustain a balance where they can achieve their business objectives and employees’ need for choice. Progressive organisations are engaging with their employees in meaningful and intentional ways to understand their evolving needs and create a work environment that allows every employee to do their best work. This means understanding the needs of various workstyles, including remote workers.
“Organisations need to take a holistic look at the entirety of the employee experience in order to truly make hybrid working effective and to meet the needs of employees and employers. This includes looking at the work environment, talent and reward programmes and policies, leader and manager effectiveness and culture.”
